SSAOST2: The Story Continued
by The Needless Lobsters
Summary: Sequel to Stakeouts, Secrets And Other Simple Things! With their wedding only months away, Tony and Ziva have to survive with twins, whilst taking care of a cheeky teenager. Does it all work out?
1. The Wedding

Tony pulled up in front of the church hall. He looked at his watch, and gave a huge sigh of relief.

"We're not late, Zi."

Ziva opened her eyes and looked over to him. "We'd better not be, Tony. If we're late, Andy and David will kill us."

Tony smiled. "Mr and Mrs Alchel. The new Mrs Alchel."

Ziva opened her door. "Tony, shut up and help me get the twins out of the car." She shut the door behind her and opened the back door. Maria's eyes fluttered open.

"Are we there yet?" she asked. Ziva nodded.

"Come on – we do not want to be late for the wedding." Ziva reached out and took Kate's baby carrier as Maria yawned and woke up fully. Tony opened the other car door and took out Tali's baby carrier. Tali started babbling as Tony lifted her and closed the door. Maria took out the baby bag and closed the door after Ziva had taken Kate out. Tony smiled at Tali.

"She's a talkative one, isn't she?"

Ziva smiled. "She got that from you, Tony."

Tony laughed. "I don't understand a word you're saying, baby," he said to Tali. Tali just continued to babble.

"Like I said Tony, she got all of it from you," Ziva pointed out before heading into the church. Maria laughed as she followed her in. Tony frowned.

"Not all of it…" he mumbled as he followed them in. He looked around the large church and noticed how full it was. He searched a bit for Ziva with his eyes before finding her on one of the reserved pews at the front. He joined her and sat next to her, placing the baby carrier by his feet. She and Maria seemed to be talking to someone in the seat in front of them. When they turned around, he noticed Rebecca.

"Hi Rebecca," he greeted. She looked over to him.

"Oh, hi Tony." She turned back to Ziva. "You should really speak to her, you know, encourage her?"

Ziva nodded. "I will." She rose from her seat and went to the back of the church, where the bride was meant to be coming from. Tony looked confused.

"What was that all about?" he asked.

"Andy's a little nervous," Rebecca admitted.

**

* * *

**

Ziva opened the door to the changing room. "Hello?" She heard something fall. "Andy? Andrea?"

Andrea stepped into Ziva's line of sight. "Hi."

Ziva took in her red eyes and tear-stained cheeks and immediately realized she had been crying. "Oh, Andy…"

"I'm fine. Just fine." Andy sniffed.

Ziva ran up to her and gave her an awkward hug. "You look the complete opposite, though. What is wrong?"

"Nothing." Andy pulled out of her hug and went over to a chair in the corner of the room.

"That is not true. I am a human lie detector – you cannot lie to me."

Andy raised her eyebrows at her. "You're not really good at this comforting thing, are you?"

Ziva smiled at her. "I'm a bit new to it."

Andy smiled at her. "I guess this is where I tell you what my problem is."

"I think it is."

Andy took a deep breath before continuing. "I'm scared, Ziva. Scared that he'll stop loving me, or stop wanting to be with me. Or even that he'll stand me up at the altar." A tear rolled down her cheek.

Ziva thought about what she was going to say. "I think I felt the same way a few months ago."

"Really? Why?"

"I was scared that Tony might stop loving me, or the children, or just leave me after the twins were born."

"What happened?"

"I am here, am I not?"

Andy smiled. "What are you trying to say, Ziva?"

"I do not know anything about getting married, but if David has told you multiple times that he loves you, I would take his word for it. And if he truly loves you, he'll be there for you every step of your marriage."

Andy considered it for a second. "Thanks Ziva. You really are a true friend." She gave Ziva a quick hug before re-doing her makeup. Ziva stood up to leave.

"I'll get Rebecca for you." She closed the door behind her and walked to the pew where Tony and Maria were sitting, only to find that there were more people than she thought. As she neared the pew, she recognized the people sitting there. "Hello."

Abby spun around and smiled brightly when she saw Ziva. "Ziva!" She got up and hugged her tightly. "Where have you been?"

Ziva looked over to Rebecca. "Andy is a lot better now."

Rebecca nodded and went to check up on her. Ziva turned to all of her 'family'.

"I did not think you were coming."

"Rebecca invited us," Abby explained. "She wanted as many people close to her as possible coming to support her best friend."

Ziva smiled at them all. "Well, it is great to see you all here."

McGee and Gibbs smiled. "It's good to be here, Ziva."

**

* * *

**

**AFTER THE WEDDING CEREMONY – AT THE RECEPTION**

Tony smiled at David as he sipped his glass of champagne. David gave him a look of confusion.

"What?" David asked.

"Dude, you're married! And your wedding ceremony was awesome!"

David smiled. "It sure was." David picked up his champagne glass and started staring into it. Tony gave him a worried look.

"You ok, Dave?" he asked.

David looked up at him. "Huh… yeah, yeah, I'm fine." He sighed. "I'm just hoping me and Andy go well together."

Tony stared at him in shock. "How could you even think that you two won't go together? You're perfect, man! Be glad that you two got to know each other 'personally' before you got married."

David was confused. "'_Personally_'?"

"Yeah, 'personally'."

"Tony, if I'd gotten to know Andy 'personally' before we got married, her dad would kill me."

Tony raised his eyebrows. "Seriously?"

"Tony, Andy's most likely to still be a virgin."

Tony stared at him, his mouth agape. "V-virgin?"

"Yeah. It's a religious thing, Tony. You wouldn't understand."

"Oh." Tony looked over to where Andy was messing around with her bridesmaids. "Are you sure she's not just a lesbian?"

David glared at him. "Tony, I don't want to beat you up on my wedding day."

Andy sauntered over to them. "Hey boys."

Tony smiled at her, then turned to David. "Guess what I heard."

David and Andy looked worried. "What did you hear?"

"David's gay."

Andy laughed at David's hurt expression, and watched him glare at Tony.

"You know," David stated, "it's really tempting to let my fist smash your face."

Tali started to squirm in her carrier. Tony looked down at her and lifted her out of the carrier, gently bouncing her to calm her down. Andy watched him attempt to calm the baby down.

"I think she's hungry," Andy pointed out. Tony continued to calm Tali down as she started to cry.

"You know, I think you're right." He reached down and opened the baby bag to get a baby bottle out. Andy smiled at him.

"Do you want me to feed her?" she asked.

Tony smiled at her. "Sure, thanks." He handed Tali to her and she immediately started to quiet down. Andy rocked her lightly in her arms as she took the bottle from Tony and had no trouble coaxing it into Tali's mouth. As soon as Tali finished, Andy burped her and let her fall asleep. Tony watched Andy cradle the sleeping baby in her arms.

"You're really a natural, you know," he pointed out.

"I work with children, Tony. What did you expect – for her to suddenly start crying because she wanted her daddy?"

Tony grinned at her sheepishly. "Maybe." He took the baby from her arms and laid her in the carrier. A slow song came on, and David smiled as he got up. He offered his hand to Andy.

"Would you like to dance?" he asked. Andy took his hand and he led her to the dance floor. Tony smiled at the couple before looking over to where Ziva was sitting with Abby. He got up and took the baby things and the baby carrier over to where they were sitting. He placed them by Abby's feet before turning to Ziva and holding out his hand.

"May I have this dance?" he asked in one of his British accents. Ziva smiled and took his hand.

"I would love to," she answered as he took her to the dance floor. McGee took Abby and they joined in slow dancing. Gibbs smiled as he watched his team dance.

"That's my team," he said to himself.


	2. Party Plans

**NOVEMBER**

Tony ran down the stairs as he buttoned up his shirt. "Ziva! Where's my tie?"

"Have you looked in your tie-drawer – where I usually put them?" she shouted from the kitchen. Tony saw something hanging over the banister. He quickly picked it up and inspected it – it was his tie.

"Don't worry – I've found it!" he called out. He quickly wrapped the tie around his neck and tied it as he headed into the kitchen. Tali and Kate were sitting in the playroom, and Tony could hear their giggling and babbling. Ziva was making breakfast and Maria was eating a bowl of cereal quickly. Tony opened the fridge and took out the carton of orange juice, gulping it all down. He quickly exited the kitchen.

"Aren't you going to have breakfast?" Maria asked. Tony slipped on his shoes and grabbed his coat.

"Nope! I'll get something down at the Yard!" He quickly came back into the kitchen and ruffled Maria's hair. "See ya later, yeah?" He walked straight into the playroom and gave Tali and Kate quick kisses before coming back into the kitchen to give Ziva a quick kiss. "Love you!" he shouted as he left the house.

Ziva looked over her shoulder at Maria, who was smirking.

"He's going to be late again, isn't he?" she guessed, almost laughing.

"Yes. Why? What is wrong?"

"Oh, nothing." Maria held up a battery in her hand. "You know, Tony's really got to learn how to set his alarm properly, and check it before he goes to bed."

Ziva raised an eyebrow at her. "Pay back?"

"It's what he gets for messing with my makeup and sending that message to Nathan!"

"So that is the boy you have been crushing on?"

"No! Well, yes... but... oh, forget it!"

**

* * *

**

Tony ran out of the elevator and into the bullpen, hoping that he managed to get in on time. Obviously, he was wrong. He looked at McGee's 'I'm-disappointed-with-you' expression, and realized what was wrong.

"I'm late again, aren't I?" Tony guessed.

"Ya think, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked sarcastically as he entered the bullpen.

"I'm sorry boss, but my alarm didn't go off this morning!"

"I thought you said Kate was a human alarm clock?" McGee asked.

"Yeah, if you don't mind waking up at 3 in the morning!" Tony tossed his bag behind his desk and took a deep sigh. "I've really gotta have a break."

"Funny, I always pictured Ziva saying that," Gibbs joked, although his face only showed hints of a smile. Tony rolled his eyes.

"Ziva actually enjoys the early morning wake up." He turned on his computer and waited to log on. McGee looked at his calendar.

"So what are you doing for thanksgiving this year, Tony?" McGee asked. "Everyone except Ziva came to Abby's party last year."

"At least we know why," Gibbs pointed out.

"I don't know. Maybe you can all come round and we can have dinner together?" Tony suggested.

"Just us?" McGee asked.

"I'll invite my fraternity too, of course." Tony smiled. "It's gonna be an awesome thanksgiving."

"You have to invite everyone first," Gibbs pointed out.

"Right. I've just invited you and McGee; I need to ask Abby, the director, Matt & Rebecca, David & Andy, Arif & Mukta, and Mark & Katie." He scribbled it all down on a piece of paper before getting up and heading for the elevator.

"Where do you think you're going, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked.

"To get invitations." He pressed the button for the elevator and waited for it to arrive.

"Might as well – it's just paperwork today!" Gibbs called out, and he smiled a little at Tony's groan.

**

* * *

**

Tony walked into the card store, hoping to get in there and get out as soon as possible. He quickly headed for the 'invitations' rack and looked through them, searching for the perfect one.

"Oh come on! Aren't there any good ones?" he said in frustration.

"There are if you look hard enough."

Tony span to see who had spoken. He raised his eyebrows when he saw the person standing behind him. "Jeanne?"

"The one and only." She smiled at him, as if nothing bad had ever come between them and they were just friends.

"W-what are you doing here?" he asked.

"Getting my thanksgiving invitations, and I'm guessing you are too. Here," she picked an invitation off the rack, "how about this one?"

Tony took one look at the card and frowned. "Jeanne, I'm much more mature than that."

She rolled her eyes. "Sure you are."

"I'm serious – I've got a girlfriend and two kids at home. I can't really afford to mess around right now."

She put the card back and reached for another one. "How about this one?"

Tony looked at it carefully. "Too formal. I want something that says, 'Hey guys, how about you come over for thanksgiving this year?' not, 'I cordially invite you, my dear friend, to thanksgiving this year at my house.'"

She put it back and smiled as she took out one more. "This one?"

"Hmmm…" Tony read the invite:

**_I,  
__ &nb sp; __, _**

**_in__formally invite you,  
__ &nb sp; __, _**

**_to my place for turkey, veggies, and other stuff on Thanksgiving. When you arrive, feel free to stuff your face._**

**_R.S.V.P., A.S.A.P.  
_**

Tony smiled. It was perfect – humorous, but not too immature. Just the right mix. "Thanks, it's perfect."

Jeanne shrugged. "No problem." She grabbed some invitations before heading to the till to pay. Tony stood in line behind her.

"How's it going with your boyfriend?" Tony asked, hoping to start an interesting conversation rather than just an awkward silence.

"He proposed to me last week," she explained. The woman at the till called her forward and she went up to pay for her items. The till next to her was free, so Tony stepped up to that one.

"That's nice," he commented as he handed the tiller the items. Jeanne smiled.

"I heard you had two little girls," she added. Tony nodded.

"Yeah, they're a handful." Tony nodded when the tiller asked if he would like a bag to carry them in. Jeanne took her bag and left the store, but waited for Tony outside. He smiled at her.

"It was nice meeting you again, Jeanne."

"Nice meeting you too, Tony." She held out her hand for him to shake. He took it in a firm grasp and shook it.

"I have to be going now – I'm needed at the hospital." She let go of his hand and headed in the opposite direction to where he was going.

"Ok, bye!" He headed to his car and started up his engine. What would Ziva say about this?

**

* * *

**

"I'm home!"

Tony shut the door behind him as he walked into his house. "Ziva?"

"I am in the kitchen!"

Tony threw his bag onto the floor by the door and entered the kitchen, where Ziva was bottle-feeding Tali. Tony smiled as he walked in on the scene and kissed Ziva on the forehead.

"Where's my little Caitlin?" he asked. Ziva pointed to the carrier at her feet, and Tony looked in to see a sleeping Kate. He stroked her cheek lightly, and she immediately woke up. She started to whine, so Tony picked her up and started bouncing her on his shoulder. She started to quiet down and soon fell back asleep.

"She's a light sleeper, isn't she?" Tony guessed. Ziva nodded as she burped Tali on her lap, sitting her forward and rubbing circles on her back. Tali started making gurgling sounds between the burps, and Tony chuckled.

"Unlike her father," Ziva joked. Tony smiled.

"How about we have a get-together for thanksgiving this year, as you missed the last one?"

"A get-together?"

"Yeah, you know, when people–"

"I know what a get-together is, Tony. Why did you not just say a party?"

Tony thought about that. "Why should I?"

"Because you are holding invites in your hand, and that can only mean a party." Ziva put Tali over her shoulder and started rocking her to sleep.

"Well…"

"I can only agree to a party if you promise to do half of the house cleaning before and after."

"Seriously?"

"Anthony DiNozzo, do I look like I am joking?"

Tony winced at the sound of his full name. "Fine, fine. I'll help clean the house. But as soon as guests arrive, I'm gone."

"I did not expect you to stay well behaved for the whole party."


	3. The Invitations

**THE NEXT MORNING**

"Bon matin, Tony! _**(Good morning, Tony!)**_" Maria said cheerfully as she bounded into the kitchen.

"Morning, Maria." Tony stopped writing on the invitation he was currently on. "Vous parlez Français? _**(You speak French?)**_"

"Mais oui, mon copin. _**(But yes, my friend.)**_" She sat down at the table beside him. "You're doing the invitations? Who's being invited?"

Tony flicked through the cards he had already done. "Gibbs, McGee, Abby, the Vances, Ducky, Palmer, Matt & Rebecca, the Alchels, the Buxtons, the Farrahs… who else are we meant to invite?"

"Looks like you've invited everyone." She looked over all the cards. "Cool invites."

"Thanks." Tony finished writing the last invite – which was for the Farrahs – and collected the invites into one pile. "Now I just have to deliver them."

"You can deliver the ones to your co-workers at work and then visit the hospital at lunch to hand the others to your frat brothers?"

Tony thought about it. "That's a great idea! Why didn't I think of it before?"

"Because it's you, Tony. You never think that much."

"Not true!"

"Prove it."

"Well there was this one time I…"

"Hmm?"

"And then that time I…"

"Uh-huh?"

"Well, uh…"

"Just save yourself a headslap and get ready for work."

**

* * *

**

Tony whistled as he walked into the bullpen that morning. He placed his bag on his desk and opened it, taking out six invitations and sealing the bag again. He put one invitation on McGee's desk and one on Gibbs' before heading down to Autopsy.

"Where do you think you're going, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked from the stairs. Tony winced when he heard Gibbs' voice.

"I need to talk to Ducky, boss."

"You better be quick, DiNozzo, because I'm not waiting for anyone if we've got a case."

Tony smiled. "Thanks boss." He got into the elevator and pressed the button for Autopsy, and waited for the elevator doors to close before getting out the next pair of invitations out.

"Ducky, and Palmer," said to himself as the doors opened again, but in Autopsy. He stepped out of the elevator and into Autopsy, where Ducky seemed to be telling Palmer one of his 'amazing' stories. Ducky turned and smiled as Tony walked in.

"Ah, Anthony. What brings you down here to Autopsy?" he asked as he headed towards him. Tony smiled.

"I just wanted to give something to you and Palmer," he explained as he held out the thanksgiving invites. Ducky took the invites and read them quickly, smiling as he did so.

"Anthony, it would be my pleasure to attend, and I'm sure Mr Palmer would love to."

"Love to do what, Doctor?" Jimmy asked as he came towards them. He took the invitation that Ducky handed him.

"I'll come," he answered with a smile.

Tony smiled back. "Thanks. It would be great for Ziva to see you all again." He turned and headed for Forensics.

"Do you think it's changed him?" Jimmy asked when Tony had left Autopsy.

"Do I think what has changed him?" Ducky asked.

"This whole situation. Do you think Tony's gone soft?"

"I think that his fatherly instincts have just taken over, not that he's gone soft. It's the way every new father acts, and he will become more like his original self with time. I have seen it many times before." Ducky turned to sit back in his seat.

"I personally don't think it's just his fatherly side, Doctor."

"Really? Could there be something else that is affecting the way he acts?"

Jimmy gave him a pointed look, and Ducky immediately understood.

"Ah, that."

"So, Dr Mallard, where were you with your story?" Jimmy asked as he leaned against an Autopsy table.

"Let me see… ah yes! So I was standing in the room, not knowing anything about my surroundings at all…"

**

* * *

**

Tony walked into the lab, covering his ears to protect them from the blaring music. Abby was dancing around her lab to the music, swinging Bert around her lab equipment.

"Abby!" He watched as she turned to face him, before lowering the volume on her music.

"Tony! What brings you to my lab today?" she asked cheerfully. He held out the invitation, and she snatched it out of his hand.

"Ooh, a party! I'm so gonna be there!" She hugged him tightly and Tony returned it.

"That's great. Now I just need to talk to the Director."

Abby stepped back from him. "If you're gonna ask for any of my help, you're not getting it. Good luck, Tony."

Tony frowned playfully as he walked out of Forensics, dragging his feet as he did so. Abby smiled at his behavior.

"Good old Tony."

**

* * *

**

Tony entered director's office to find him arguing with two children. He stood at the door and watched them argue with interest.

"But dad! I'm bored!" the older one of the children said. She was clearly upset and wanted whatever Vance was saying no about.

"No. I promised your mother that you would stay safe and not get too involved in my work. That means you will not get anywhere near my employees."

"Not even Special Agent DiNozzo?" the younger one asked. He seemed a little calmer, not as angry as his older sister.

"Especially not Agent DiNozzo. His immature attitude is not appropriate for my children."

"What's wrong with my attitude, Director?" Tony asked. The children laughed at their father's embarrassed expression when he realized Tony had been listening.

"Special Agent DiNozzo, I…"

"No need to explain, Director." He handed Vance the invite and stepped towards the kids. "Kayla, Jared."

"DiNozzo," they said. Tony smiled at them.

"I'll consider it," Vance said as he put the invite into his pocket, "but I'm sure the Mrs would love to attend."

"I'm sure the kids would have a great time with Maria," Tony added. Vance nodded.

"I guess it's a yes then."

Tony smiled as he exited the office. He just hoped the party would be a good one.


	4. The Party and The Panic

**THANKSGIVING**

Tony opened the front door to his teammates, each one holding a small gift in their hands. Tony took the gifts as they entered the house.

"How are you guys?" he asked as he shut the door behind Gibbs.

"We're good," Abby answered as she wrapped her arm around McGee's waist. Gibbs cleared his throat, and she immediately let go.

"Just because I'm letting DiNozzo and David get together doesn't mean you can."

Just then, Maria skipped into the living room. "Oh, hi guys!"

Abby hugged her. "Maria! How are you doing?"

Maria smiled. "I'm good." Abby held her by the shoulders and looked her up and down.

"You've grown!" Abby squealed. "I don't have to call you my little midget anymore!"

"I've grown?" Maria asked. She looked over to McGee, who nodded.

"You look about five-foot-five now," he noticed. "That's an extra three inches since we last saw you."

"Yes!" Maria yelled as she squeezed Abby. She let go of her and turned to Tony. "So has the party started?"

* * *

Maria, Tony, McGee, Jimmy and Gibbs sat together in the yard, talking about past times, together and apart, when Matt and Rebecca arrived. Rebecca brought a bowl of salad for the party. Ziva smiled as she took it.

"I thought you'd be overwhelmed with cooking," Rebecca explained.

"I am, thank you. I have just finished making the rice, but there is nothing to go with it."

"I heard Andy was bringing curry," Rebecca offered. Ziva smiled and put the salad on the table.

"What kind of curry?"

* * *

Tony looked at Maria. "So, what did you used to do on Thanksgiving, Maria?"

Maria shrugged. "I spent mine with foster families."

"Oh."

"But there was this family I stayed with for three years. They were awesome. Every Thanksgiving they used to play a sport as a family. Usually it was baseball, but once they played soccer."

McGee smiled. "That sounds like a cool idea."

"What – Thanksgiving baseball?" Tony asked.

"Yeah," Matt replied, "it could be a family tradition, only we start it this year rather than fifty or so years ago."

"I'd be up for it," McGee offered.

"Same here," Matt said. "Palmer?"

"I wouldn't mind," Jimmy answered.

"I'll play," Maria said. "Tony?"

"Sure. Gibbs?"

Gibbs sighed. "I might as well, DiNozzo. It's your party."

Tony smiled. "Maria, go get the baseball and the bat."

Maria ran inside and upstairs to get the baseball and bat that Tony kept in his room. She looked up briefly and smiled at the Paris picture before she left the room. Just as she was coming down the stairs, the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it!" she cried. She smiled at the guests when she opened the door. "Ziva! Your director's here!" She quickly ushered the guests into the living room and peeped into the kitchen. Ziva was leaning against the counter, talking to Rebecca.

"Ziva! I said there were more guests!"

Ziva looked up sharply at Maria. "I know that. I was just coming."

"Sure you were."

Ziva followed Maria out into the living room, where the director was standing with his family. He nodded at her.

"Miss David."

"Leon. In my home, you may call me by my first name."

"Ziva, then."

Jared looked at Maria confused. "What are you doing?"

"I was gonna go play baseball. Wanna come?" she asked. Jared looked up at his father.

"Dad, can we go play baseball?" he pleaded.

Leon shrugged. "Ok." The two followed Maria outside into the garden where the guys were setting up the diamond.

Ziva smiled at Vance's wife. "Jackie."

Jackie smiled back. "Ziva, how's it been?"

"It has been good." Ziva looked at the young lady. "Kayla, yes?"

"Yeah." Kayla smiled.

"Do you want to look at the babies?" Ziva asked. Kayla's smile brightened, and she gave her mother a pleading look.

"Yes, you can go."

Kayla smiled as she ran through the kitchen into the playroom, where Abby was playing with Kate and Kate was laughing. Kayla gasped.

"They're so adorable!" she whispered. Abby turned to her.

"I know, right." She stopped bouncing Kate and put her in the playpen, where Tali was crawling around. Kayla went over to it and watched them interact. Tali crawled up to Kate, who was sitting in the corner of the playpen, and poked her nose. Kate frowned and sneezed before crawling somewhere else. Kayla laughed.

"They love to interact with each other," she pointed out.

"Babies move in mysterious ways," Abby said before leaving the room and heading into the kitchen. Just then, Katie and Mark arrived, bringing pasta salad along with them. Mark ran outside when Ziva took the salad gratefully as she watched Kayla from the kitchen.

Kayla had stayed in the room, watching the babies playing about. Suddenly, her attention was turned on Kate, who was trying to climb the edge of the playpen. She giggled a little as she tried to prevent Kate from climbing up.

"No," she said softly as she sat Kate down in the playpen. Unfortunately, Kate wasn't one to give up. She crawled to edge of the playpen again and attempted to climb the edge again. Kayla just sat her back down again.

"Sit," she said, sternly but softly. Kate just giggled and tried to climb the edge again. Kayla sighed in frustration and picked Kate up, plopping her in the middle of the playpen and giving her a stuffed toy to play with. Kate gurgled happily as she played with the toy in her arms. Kayla thought that everything was going well, until she realized that there was one less baby in the playpen. Her eyes widened in shock as she searched for the baby, but couldn't find her. There was only one thing for her to do.

"Mom!" she yelled as she got up and ran into the kitchen. Jackie looked at her from her seat at the table.

"Yes, honey?" she asked. She noticed the worried look on Kayla's face and became worried. "What's wrong?"

Kayla stood there, biting her lip as she looked around the room. Everyone was staring at her intentionally. She held her arms shyly behind her back. Jackie raised her eyebrows at her daughter impatiently.

"Well?"

Kayla took a deep breath before saying what she said next.

"Tali's gone missing."


	5. TJ, Baseball and The promise

The whole room was struck dumbfounded.

"Gone?" Ziva asked uncertainly. Kayla nodded uncertainly. Ziva rubbed her hand on her forehead.

"Oh mon dieu, _**(Oh my god)**_" she sighed. Ducky wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

"Don't worry, my dear, we'll find her. She can't have gotten out of this house," he soothed. Jackie and Abby quickly stood up and went to search the playroom. Rebecca and Katie looked through all the kitchen cupboards, just in case Tali had crawled into one of them. Ducky sat Ziva down at the table and rubbed her shoulders reassuringly. Kayla stood guiltily in the kitchen, staring at her feet. Jackie sighed as she came back into the kitchen.

"Kayla, sit down in the living room. Standing here in the kitchen is not helping anyone," she sighed. Kayla obeyed her mom and sat down on one of the couches in the living room. She sat silently for a few minutes and listened as the women looked all over the place, mumbling amongst themselves. As she sat, staring into space, she suddenly heard a giggle and some gurgling. Her eyes searched the room and finally rested on a moving stack of newspapers. She carefully snuck over and took off a piece of newspaper on top, revealing a giggling Tali. Kayla smiled.

"I found her!" she yelled. The women ran into the living room and gave huge sighs of relief when they saw her. Ziva picked her up.

"Don't you ever scare your mother like that again!" Ducky scolded playfully. Tali giggled in her mother's arms as she played with a piece of newspaper in her hands.

"She doesn't look like a Tali to me," Rebecca pointed out.

"Really?" Ziva asked.

"I mean, Tali is short for Talia, right?"

"Yes."

"And Talia means female lamb, right?"

"Yes."

"She's not exactly gentle lamb, is she?"

"Yeah," Katie agreed. "She's way too adventurous. What's her middle name?"

"Jennifer."

"She looks like a TJ."

Ziva smiled as Tali's ears pricked up when she heard the nickname. Tali stared at Katie for a little while before starting to giggle. Ziva watched Tali's reactions.

"TJ?"

Tali looked up at her.

"Do you like it?"

Tali gurgled happily as if she understood everything before going back to play with the piece of newspaper in her hands. Ziva laughed.

"You really have a short…" She looked to Rebecca for help.

"Short attention span," Rebecca finished off for her. Ziva nodded.

"Yes, just like your father – especially when he is on painkillers."

Everyone laughed. Tali laughed a bit as well, although she didn't know why they were laughing. There was a knock on the front door, and Ziva opened it to welcome Andy and David into the house. David was carrying a large saucepan, and Andy was smiling cheekily at him.

"Hi, Ziva," she said cheerfully. David just smiled at her as he struggled with the giant saucepan in his hands.

"Would you like to come in?" Ziva asked.

"Yes!" David breathed as he headed inside quickly and took the pot to the kitchen. Andy smiled at Ziva.

"Sorry about that…" she started to apologise.

"Don't worry – Tony seems to be a lot like that!" she joked as she let Andy in. Andy nodded at her before smiling at the little girl in her arms.

"Hello, there!"

Tali's attention immediately turned to her, and she stared at her for a few seconds before slowly shying away. Ziva chuckled.

"I do not think she is normally like this."

Andy reached forward and slowly stroked her cheek. Tali shied away at first, but when she realized what she was doing she became a little more confident, and started babbling away. Andy laughed.

"She really is a talker," she said as she walked into the living room. Katie and Rebecca smiled as she came in.

"Finally!" Katie gasped dramatically.

"How long does it take to get here?" Rebecca demanded.

"I had to cook, get ready, make sure David was ready…"

"Ah." Everyone nodded as they headed into the kitchen. David had already left to go and join the baseball match outside. Andy watched them from the window.

"I hope they behave themselves," she said.

"Knowing them, they won't," Katie said, destroying all Andy's hopes of getting David to keep his new shirt clean.

* * *

Maria picked up the baseball bat from the ground. "Hey, Tony! It's my turn!"

Tony nodded. "Alright then!"

The positions in the game had already been sorted out – David on 1st base, Matt on 2nd, Mark on 3rd, Jared playing shortstop, Jimmy on left-field, Vance on right-field and Gibbs in the centre-field. McGee was playing catcher.

Maria picked up the baseball bat and weighed it her hand, focusing on her strengths and weaknesses before Tony yelled, "Batter up!" Maria stepped forward and got into her batting stance. Tony tossed the ball lightly in his hands as he waited for Maria to get ready.

"You ready?" he asked. Maria nodded and held up the bat, ready to hit the ball. Tony pitched the ball.

Strike one.

He pitched again.

Strike two.

He paused before he decided to pitch the ball again. "Aren't you ever going to swing that bat?"

"I'm waiting for the perfect ball."

"I bet you can't even hit a ball!"

Maria frowned. "Yes, I can. And I'm going to prove it."

Tony chuckled. "Sure you are." He tossed the ball in his hands a couple of times, teasing Maria as he did so. The other players began to get annoyed.

"Come on, Tony!" Matt yelled. "Pitch the damn ball!"

Tony smiled at Maria. "Here goes, Maria – your one and only chance to prove me wrong." He got his stance ready. "There's no way she can hit this," he murmured to himself. He pitched.

She hit it angrily, determined to prove Tony wrong. The ball flew…

Tony doubled over in pain. Maria bit her lip.

"Ouch," she said sympathetically. Matt watched Tony collapse and curl into a protective ball.

"Dude, you ok?" he asked. Tony didn't answer. Everyone ran forward to check on him. McGee looked at Maria.

"Go and get Ziva, NOW."

Maria ran into the house, Jared following her, and ran straight into the kitchen where the women were meant to be with Ducky. They were laughing as she and Jared ran in, panting heavily. Ziva looked at them worriedly.

"What is wrong?" she asked.

"The ball hit Tony in the crotch," Jared panted. His mother gave him a look of disapproval.

"Can't you say anything more appropriate, Jared?" she sighed.

"Come on, this is appropriate, unless you want me to say he got hit in the bul–"

"Don't say it."

Ziva frowned at Maria. "The truth?"

Maria bit her lip before talking. "Tony got hit in the balls when I hit the ball and it flew straight at him."

Ziva rolled her eyes. "I'm coming out," she said as she moved from the counter she was leaning on and headed for the back door.

* * *

Tony groaned as Ziva and McGee helped him to walk inside, his groin still hurting. They took him inside to the sofa and lay him down on it so that he could relax. Ziva kissed him gently on the forehead.

"Just rest. Ducky says it should wear off soon," she said. Tony nodded and closed his eyes as he tried to block out the pain in his groin. McGee headed back out into the yard to continue playing baseball with everyone, and Ziva went back into the kitchen to continue with setting up thanksgiving dinner. Tony lay there for about ten minutes before he heard someone come into the living room. He expected that person to just walk through or come up to check on him, but what surprised him is that he heard the rustling of newspaper not long after and a giggle. He opened his eyes and was surprised when he saw Tali playing with his papers.

"Tali," he said faintly. He cleared his throat and tried again. "Tali, come here honey!"

Tali continued to ignore him. He frowned.

"She won't answer to that, you know." Andy was leaning against the door to the kitchen. Tony frowned at her.

"What will she answer to, then?" he asked. Andy smiled.

"TJ!" she called out. Tali looked up and straight at Andy, smiling. Tony stared in shock.

"TJ?" he repeated. Tali looked over to him. He smiled. "I like TJ – reminds me that she's got a bit of attitude and that she's my kid," he joked. Andy laughed and Tali crawled over to him. He picked her up.

Ziva came out of the kitchen to see what all the commotion was. She smiled when she saw Tony awake and smiling.

"I am guessing you are not in pain anymore?" she said quizzically. Tony sat up slowly and nodded.

"No more pain – well, not much anyway." He winced a bit as he stretched, but most of the pain seemed to be gone. Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Ziva went to answer it, and Tony smiled as he heard the voices of the final guests enter the house. Arif smiled at Tony as he headed into the living room. Mukta and Ziva went straight into the kitchen, Mukta carrying a bowl or Tandoori-style chicken.

"You ok, dude?" Arif asked as he watched Tony playing with his daughter.

"Yeah, I'm cool."

Ziva popped her head into the living room. "Dinner is ready!"

* * *

Tony tickled TJ as she squirmed in his arms, holding a piece of scrunched up newspaper in her hands. Ziva smiled at the scene as she brought a babbling Kate into the living room. Abby was literally screaming with delight when she saw her holding a small green teddy bear. The teddy bear had the initials _KAD_ embroidered on it, standing for Kate Abigail DiNozzo. The group stared at her when she pointed at the teddy bear in Kate's arms.

"She loves the teddy!" she squealed.

"What teddy?" McGee asked, before he noticed the green teddy bear in Kate's arms. "You got that as a gift for her didn't you?"

Abby nodded eagerly before reaching for her bag and pulling out a blue blanket. Tony stared at her as she handed it to him.

"You got TJ a blanket?" he asked suspiciously.

"Yeah."

Tony carefully put TJ on his lap and read what was embroidered on the blanket. _TJD_. "Alright, what's the catch?" he asked.

"There is no catch," Abby attempted to convince him, but he didn't look convinced. Abby sighed.

"Fine, there is a catch – you must promise to bring them both to work with you sometime."

Ziva froze. "Abby, do you know how hard it is to take care of two babies that constantly get into trouble?"

"Oh come on – I know TJ is troublesome, but not Kate."

"Abby, she crawled into the washing machine last Tuesday – how can you not call that troublesome?" Tony asked. Abby thought about it for a second.

"Fine, but you've still gotta bring them to work."

Tony and Ziva rolled their eyes.

"Fine," Ziva sighed.

"Dio ci aiuti, _**(God help us)**_" Tony mumbled.


	6. The Kids At Work, and TJ Missing again

**A COUPLE OF WEEKS LATER**

Ziva smiled as she walked out of the elevator and into the bullpen, pushing a double pram with the twins bubbling away inside. She smiled as TJ tried to sit up in the pram but fell back down and started babbling loudly. Tony looked up as she pushed in the pram and laughed.

"You actually kept the promise?"

"We made it to Abby though, yes?" she pointed out.

"Good point." Tony got up and reached for TJ who was babbling away. McGee smiled as he watched Tony play with his daughter. Just as he watched Tony put TJ down on the floor, McGee felt his cell phone vibrate. He looked at his caller ID and realized it was Abby.

"Hey Abs," he greeted as he answered the phone. He heard her go on for a bit before she asked him the question he had been expecting her to ask.

"_Is Ziva here yet?_" she asked.

"Uhh… yes."

The line immediately cut and a few seconds later the elevator dinged and Abby bounced out. She bounded straight into the bullpen and started squealing when she saw Kate and TJ crawling all over the floor in their 'NCIS' onsies that Abby and Ziva had gotten for them. Abby crouched down and started playing peek-a-boo with Kate. Kate giggled and clapped her hands at her. Ziva looked over to TJ, who had pulled herself up and was going through her father's desk. She smiled when she pulled an NCIS cap out and sat down to try it on. Tony walked over and wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing her tenderly and taking her mind off whatever the babies were doing. When they pulled apart, they realized McGee had gone to the vending machine and Abby had gone back to her lab. Tony smiled.

"We're all alone," he whispered as he brought his lips towards Ziva's. She leaned towards him and kissed him tenderly.

"DiNozzo, leave the smooching for later!" Gibbs barked as he strode into the bullpen. McGee returned from the vending machine and was just about to sit down when Gibbs yelled, "Grab your gear!"

Ziva stayed sitting as the other two got their stuff ready. Tony grunted as he picked up his bag.

"This is heavier than I remember," he groaned as he headed to Ziva. He gave her a quick peck on the lips. "See ya later, sweet-cheeks."

"Stay safe, Tony," she smiled at him as they left.

A few minutes later, Ziva checked the clock on her phone and realized it was the twins' lunchtime. She picked Kate up from underneath Gibbs' desk and scanned her eyes around the bullpen for TJ. When she couldn't see her, she got worried.

"TJ?"

No answer.

"Oh non, non, non ... elle ne peut pas être parti ... _**(Oh no, no, no… she can't be gone…)**_" she murmured to herself as she set Kate in the pram. She crouched down and searched under the desks. "Elle ne peut pas être loin ... elle a d'être ici. Ne pas me faire ça, TJ. _**(She can't be far… she has to be here. Don't do this to me TJ.)**_" She fell back onto her bum and put her head in her hands.

"Cela ne peut pas se passer! _**(This can't be happening!)**_" she murmured to herself over and over again.

Abby walked into the bullpen and sat Ziva sitting on the floor with her head in her hands. "Ziva? Are you ok?"

Ziva looked up at Abby, a frightened look on her face. "I cannot find TJ."

* * *

Tony was sitting in the shotgun seat as Gibbs drove to the crime scene. His bag was sat on his lap, unlike its usual position in the trunk. Gibbs looked over to him.

"What's wrong, DiNozzo?" he demanded. Tony shrugged.

"Something's wrong." He was about to turn back to staring out of the window when his bag moved. He stared at it in shock. "Erm, boss?"

"What is it, DiNozzo?" Gibbs kept his eyes on the road. McGee leant forward in his seat and noticed the moving bag as well.

"Boss?" Tony repeated. McGee was staring at the bag, as if something was going to pop out at any second. Gibbs sighed as he looked at them.

"What?"

Tony pointed at the moving bag. Gibbs rolled his eyes.

"Don't just sit there, DiNozzo – open it!"

Tony carefully unzipped the bag, and jumped when a pair of bright green eyes stared up at him. Suddenly, the head popped out, and Tony sighed with relief when he recognized who was in the bag. McGee continued to stare in shock.

"Tony, what is your daughter doing in your bag where all your supplies should be?" McGee asked. Tony shrugged, before feeling his phone vibrate in his pocket. He looked at the caller ID and realized it was Ziva. He answered the call.

"Hey, Zi."

"_T-Tony?_" He could hear her worried voice on the other line.

"Yes?"

"_I… I can't find her._"

Tony's pulse sped up. "Who?"

"_TJ._"

Tony nearly burst out laughing. "What a coincidence – guess who I found?"

He heard Ziva pause on the other line. "_Who?_"

"TJ."

"_Seriously?_"

"Yeah." He watched as TJ played with his hat and started trying it on.

"_Do not lie to me, Tony._"

Tony chuckled and moved the phone towards TJ. "TJ, say hello to momma."

TJ gurgled and smiled at Tony. She looked at the phone and gave him a confused look.

Tony rolled his eyes. "Go on, say hello…"

TJ smiled. "Dada!" she giggled. Tony stared at her in shock.

"What did you just say?"

TJ looked up at Tony and smiled. "Dada, dada!"

"_Tony, please tell me that our daughter just said her first word,_" Ziva said from the other line. Tony smiled.

"I think she did."

Gibbs was smiling as he did a speedy U-turn at the next intersection and headed back to the Navy Yard. McGee was watching TJ play with Tony's cap. Tony was just sitting there, speaking to Ziva on the phone.

"Ok, we're heading back to base now, so we'll see you in five."

"_What makes you think you will be here in five minutes?_"

"Gibbs is driving."

"_Ah._"

"Love you, babe." He ended the call and turned to TJ, tapping her lightly on the nose. "You cause too much trouble." TJ looked up at him and giggled before putting his cap in her mouth and starting to chew it. Tony groaned. "Uh, boss?"

"That's the only cap you're getting DiNozzo, deal with it."

* * *

Ziva sat patiently at her desk, waiting for Tony and Gibbs to get back with her daughter. She jumped up when the elevator dinged and smiled when she saw TJ. She ran up to them and took TJ from Tony's arms, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek before turning back to TJ.

"Don't you ever do that again, you espiègle petite fille, _**(mischievous little girl)**_" she scolded. TJ just reached up and started playing with Ziva's hair. Ziva rolled her eyes, but laughed at her. "Que ferons-nous avec vous? _**(What will we do with you?)**_"


	7. A week before Christmas

**Hey everyone :D just wanted to let you all know that from now on in the story the lanuage is gonna increase so the rating may be changed to an M! anyway thanks you all for reading and reviewing and here is the next part of the story!: **

* * *

** A WEEK BEFORE CHRISTMAS**

Tony woke up at 3am for the third time that week, groaning and rubbing his head as he headed to the twins' bedroom. Kate had been waking up early since she was younger just for feeding and it was really getting on Tony's nerves. He opened the door and spotted Kate sitting up in her cot, crying. Tony picked her up and sighed, gently rocking her on his shoulder.

"How on earth am I going to be awake enough to get your Christmas presents?" he grumbled. He looked at Kate on his shoulder, who seemed to have fallen asleep. He sighed. "Of course, just fall asleep." He lowered her back into her cot gently so as to not wake her up. He groaned and scratched his head as he stumbled back into his room and got back into bed beside Ziva. She opened her eyes slightly as she turned to him.

"What was the problem?" she asked.

"Kate woke up for no reason. We have to get her to sleep for a whole night."

"I would like to see you help her sleep all night. It will be funny."

"And my attempt will be humorous because?"

"Because it is you, Tony, and everything looks humorous on you. Plus it will not just be the attempt that is going to be humorous; there is also the failure to remember."

Tony grumbled something incomprehensible before turning his back to Ziva and going back to sleep. Ziva chuckled. Gibbs would be angry – no pissed – with him in the morning if he fell asleep at his desk again.

* * *

The bullpen was empty, apart from a sleeping TJ, a gurgling Kate and a slightly tired Tony.

Tony sat at his desk, staring at the little girl sitting on his desk in front of him. Kate just stared back at him, reaching for his tie constantly. Tony sat her back on the desk and placed her so that she was looking right at him.

"Come on, do it," he groaned. Kate just stared at his frustrated expression. Tony rolled his eyes as Kate started blowing raspberries. He put his head in his hands and sighed heavily. Just then, McGee walked into the office and spotted Tony with his head in his hands and Kate reaching for his hair. He chuckled.

"You still trying to get her to talk?" he asked. Tony raised his head and nodded. McGee just laughed and got something out of his pocket. Tony raised an eyebrow at him.

"A bubble blower?"

McGee smiled. "Kate loves them." He dipped the wand in the bubble mixture before holding it up to his lips and blowing a bubble. Kate turned as soon as she saw them and reached her hand out to grab them and pop them.

"Bubble!" she giggled. McGee laughed as Tony stared at her in shock. He shrugged.

"There's the first word you wanted, right?"

Tony grumbled as he glanced at the clock on his computer and tried to keep Kate on his desk. _2 o'clock_. Abby would be free. He picked up Kate and placed her in the first carrier, before picking up both baby carriers and heading for the elevators.

"Where you going, Tony?" McGee asked. Tony pressed the button for the elevator and turned to face the bullpen.

"I need a break!" he called out as the elevator doors opened. He stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for Abby's lab.

* * *

Tony sat down on the floor in Abby's lab as he watched the twins crawling around, touching things on the floor and using objects to pull themselves up. At that moment, Kate was making faces with Abby whilst TJ was playing with Bert, laughing whenever he made the farting noise. Tony chuckled. TJ was the most adventurous little girl he had ever met. She had the attitude of a boy, rather than the cute, girly attitude Kate had. How he happened to have twins with complete opposite personalities he would never know.

"Tony?"

Tony looked up to realize Abby was looking at him. "Yeah?"

"Have you even been listening to what I've been saying?"

"Uh…" Tony thought about it. "What've you been talking about?"

Abby rolled her eyes at him. "I was asking what you were going to do for Christmas this year."

"Oh, I dunno. Maybe we'll just have a family day."

"Or…"

Tony sighed. "Or what, Abs?"

Abby gave him a look that said, 'You have to know what I mean!' Tony sighed and put on a fake excited face.

"Gee, Abs, I was thinking, would you like to come round this Christmas?" he asked in an exaggerated cheerful voice. Abby glared at him.

"That wasn't funny, Tony."

"Would you rather I said it in a glum voice?"

Abby thought about it for a moment. "No, the '_so happy I may be high_' voice was good."

"Stai cercando di farmi saltare i nervi? _**(Are you trying to get on my nerves?)**_" he asked.

"No, lei sta riuscendo. _**(No, she is succeeding.)**_" Maria had walked into the lab and was leaning against the main computer, holding her I-Pod touch and listening to the music with one earphone in. "Ma sarebbe più facile per voi se le chiese. _**(But it would be easier for you to find out if you asked her.)**_"

Abby was watching the conversation go on, not knowing what was being said at all, but she had a feeling it had something to do with her.

"Perché sei così arrabbiato con Abby comunque? _**(Why are you so upset with Abby anyway?)**_" Maria asked.

"Perché lei mi ha costretto in più di invitarla per il Natale, _**(Because she forced me into inviting her over for Christmas)**_" Tony replied. Maria smiled.

"I think it's a great idea Tony! Why didn't you think of it before?" Maria turned to Abby. "It would be awesome to have you guys over for Christmas – you and McGee, and Gibbs, and Jimmy, and Ducky…"

"Woah, hold on there, I said nothing about bringing extra guests."

"But you said you wanted to spend Christmas with your family!" Abby pointed. "Aren't we your family Tony?" She put on the saddest puppy-dog face she could muster. Tony tried to avoid looking at her face and falling into the trap, but ended up falling for it anyway. He sighed.

"Fine, you can all come, but no more visitors – just the team, you, Jimmy and Ducky," he finally agreed. He noticed Kate let out a little yawn and realized it was 3:30, way past her naptime. He sat forward and scooped her into his arms, rocking her gently and humming lowly. Maria looked over at TJ, who was staring up at her with her big green eyes and sucking her thumb. Maria picked her up and brought her over to Tony, who was sitting beside the baby bag.

"I think she's hungry – she doesn't usually suck her thumb," Maria pointed out. Abby got up and decided to leave the room.

"I'll just see what McGee's up to," she said as she left the room. Maria looked at Tony.

"Cercare nella tasca esterna e ottenere la sua prima pettorale _**(Look in the outer pocket and get her bib first)**_" Tony instructed. Maria opened the outer pocket and took out a light blue bib. She carefully tied it around TJ's neck before looking at Tony for help again. His attention was all on Kate, and she was fast asleep in his arms. Maria had to clear her throat before he noticed she was still there and needed his help.

"Aprire la busta principale e uscire dalla bottiglia. Non preoccuparti di riscaldamento in su - non le importa il suo latte tiepido _**(Open the main bag and get out the bottle. Don't worry about heating it up – she doesn't mind her milk lukewarm)**_" he continued. Maria did as he asked, and soon she was feeding TJ, who sucked on the bottle as if there was no tomorrow. Maria laughed lightly. She definitely had Tony's appetite.

Tony put Kate carefully in her carrier and tucked her teddy next to her. He smiled. She looked so much like Ziva when she was asleep – peaceful, like the world was perfect. Actually they both did, both she and TJ. He just hoped they were going to be this peaceful at Christmas.


	8. Preparations

Tony woke up to two pairs of green eyes staring up at him. He sat forward and stretched, immediately regretting it when he felt pain in his back and neck. He looked down and realized he had fallen asleep in the rocking chair Gibbs had made them not long after the twins were born. He sighed.

"So this is why Ziva never lets me nap in the chair," he told himself. "I must've fallen asleep whilst watching the twins last night…"

"Dada?" TJ was holding herself up on Tony's legs, only just managing to see above his knees. Kate was beside her, doing the same thing. He smiled at them.

"Sì, principessa? _**(Yes, princess?)**_" he asked. TJ held her arms out at him. Tony smiled and pulled her onto his lap, wincing as there was pain in his back. He did the same with Kate, and started bouncing them lightly on his lap. Kate and TJ giggled.

"Ti piace, eh? Che ne dici di questo? _**(You like that, huh? How about this?)**_" He bounced them even more on his lap and they started laughing even louder. He was about to bounce them even more when he heard a small laugh at the door.

"I think you should stop now – Kate looks like she might be sick."

Tony looked up to see Maria at the door. He stopped bouncing the twins and they started to whimper immediately. Maria smiled.

"Non c'è bisogno di piangere, le ragazze. Papà lo farà di nuovo con voi qualche volta, _**(No need to cry, girls. Daddy will do it again with you sometime)**_" she said. As if obeying a command, TJ and Kate stopped crying immediately. Maria walked up to Tony and picked Kate off his lap, putting her on her hip expertly. Tony blinked tiredly.

"It's about time you're awake," Maria pointed out.

"Why?" Tony asked.

"Oh, I dunno, it's nine o'clock on Christmas day, and we haven't opened our presents?"

"Oh. That doesn't matter."

"And the guys will be turning up in about half an hour to an hour's time. Ziva's just started making the dinner, and you're sitting here playing with the twins." She picked TJ off his lap. "Hurry up and get dressed!"

Tony stood up slowly, and stumbled into his bedroom to get ready for the guests to come.

* * *

Once Tony had dressed and ready, he headed down to the kitchen to see what was going on. He smiled when he saw Ziva with her back turned to him, doing some sort of cooking. He crept up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder. She chuckled as she continued to cook, chopping carrots to put with the dinner. Tony kissed her cheek and continued to watch her cook. Ziva sighed.

"I cannot concentrate with you standing behind me like that, Tony," she sighed. Tony smiled.

"Not even this once?" he asked cheekily.

"No, and I expect you to be scared further since I am holding a knife."

Tony tensed a little, but relaxed again after a few seconds. "You wouldn't seriously consider killing your future husband, would you?"

Ziva thought about it for a moment before putting down the knife and turning in Tony's arms. "Quizás, no pude … _**(Perhaps, I might not…) **_Pero muy está tentando… _**(But it is very tempting**__**…**__**)**_"

Tony's eyes widened. "Por favor, no - necesito vivir. _**(Please, no – I need to live.)**_"

Ziva chuckled. "Sé que. _**(I know.)**_"

"Yeah, can you cut out the sexual tension – it's kind of awkward when I come in." Maria stood at the door, wearing a sea-blue jumper with her favourite dark blue jeans. Tony sighed.

"Well what am I supposed to do? It's hard when she's here, I mean she's just so…" He looked Ziva up and down. "…Sexy… damn sexy…"

"You did not just call her 'sexy' in front of me!" Maria gave him a look of disgust. "Ew!"

"Yup, and I'm gonna do this." He took Ziva in his arms in one fluid movement and kissed her passionately, smiling as he heard Maria gagging. He pulled away from Ziva.

"If you don't like it, leave."

Maria ran out of the room without a second glance at the couple. Ziva smiled.

"We are not even married yet, and you are already torturing my sister," she pointed out. Tony just laughed.

"Since when has that ever stopped me?" he teased before kissing her again. Ziva smiled and moved her hands to his neck. He could feel himself grinning on the inside and carefully pulled her away from him. He rested his forehead against hers.

"I really love you, ya know," Tony whispered. Ziva smiled again.

"I know, and I love you too," she replied. He leant her back romantically and kissed her again, more passionately than before. Ziva ran one of her hands through his hair and kept the other on his neck.

"Since when did the kitchen become a make-out room, Tony?"

Tony gasped when he heard the voice and dropped Ziva suddenly, causing her to scream. McGee stifled a laugh and Abby stared in shock.

"Tony! Tell me you did not just drop your future wife in the kitchen on Christmas Day!" she yelled.

"Uh…" Tony bit his lip. "I didn't just drop my future wife in the kitchen on Christmas Day?"

Ziva sat up and rubbed her head sorely. "That hurt, Tony! Do not ever do that again!"

Tony winced as he received a slap to the back of the head. He span and saw his boss smirking at him.

"What'd I do now, boss?"

"You dropped your future wife on the floor. Never do that if you wanna live, DiNozzo." And with that he headed back to the living room, sipping his coffee all the way. Abby helped Ziva up and got her an ice pack for her head. Ziva rejected it and went back over to the counter where she had been cooking before Tony had come in. Tony stood guiltily in the middle of the kitchen, watching Ziva's backside as she did so. Ziva felt his gaze on her back and sighed.

"If you do not have anything interesting or important to say to me Tony, then would you please leave me to cook en paz? _**(in **__**peace**__**?)**_"

Tony hung his head as he trudged into the living room, and Abby and McGee followed him, backing away slowly for fear of awakening the angry Ziva that was breaking to the surface.

* * *

Maria started putting the plates out on the dining table as Tony set up the twins' highchairs. It was about twelve o'clock, and the Christmas Dinner was finally cooked and ready to eat. Tony sighed as he finished setting up the chairs and got some glasses for the table. Maria got out the large cartons of juice and set them up on the table. Once she had finished she ran upstairs to get the twins who, from the crying she heard, had just woken up. Ziva brought the bowls of vegetables, roast potatoes and salad along with the salad cream. Tony went over to the counter and brought the roast lamb to the table.

"Are you sure this is Kosher, Zi?" he asked.

"Yes, I am sure. I went to buy it myself, Tony, with your car."

Tony froze. "My car?"

"Yes, your car. I felt like using it."

Tony frowned as he put the lamb on the table. "That's why my keys disappeared."

Ziva just chuckled as she put the cutlery into the pots and bowls on the table. Then she turned to the kitchen archway and yelled, "Dinner's ready!"

There was a crash and a yell from the living room before the first of the team, which just so happened to be Gibbs, entered the kitchen and sat at the head of table. Ducky followed and sat on his right side, and Jimmy came in and sat beside Ducky. Then there was a squeal and a giggle from the living room and McGee came in, piggy-backing Abby who was laughing. Tony frowned playfully.

"You better not have done anything to destroy my living room, McLover-boy," he warned. McGee sighed as he put Abby down.

"Don't worry, I haven't."

Abby sat down on the other side of Gibbs and McGee sat beside her. Tony sat down beside McGee as Maria came into the room carrying the twins, TJ hitting Maria with a squeaky toy and Kate resting her head on her shoulder, still half asleep. Ziva took Kate from her arms and gently woke her up before setting her in her highchair. Maria put TJ in her highchair before sitting in her seat which was in between the highchairs. Ziva went over to the counter and started to prepare the baby food for the twins. Tony looked at the team sitting around the table.

"Don't just sit there – dig in!"

Ziva smiled as she heard the clanging of cutlery as each of the team took a portion of the food. She heard Kate and TJ whining for their food. She sighed as she finished heating up the food and put them into bowls for each of them, then brought them to the highchairs and placed each baby meal on the mini-tables. Kate had a banana flavored meal, and TJ had pear and apple. TJ and Kate both grabbed their spoons and started playing with their food as Ziva sat down and reached for the lamb.

"I can't believe I'm eating Kosher," McGee joked. Everyone smiled.

"It isn't as bad as it sounds, actually," Tony added. There was silence for a few minutes as the team continued to eat their meals. The silence was broken by a small giggle from TJ, who Maria was trying to get to eat her food.

"No," Maria scolded as she took TJ's spoon from her to avoid getting flicked by food. She scooped some of the food onto the spoon and handed it to TJ. "Eat."

TJ took the spoon and giggled as she started playing with her food again. Maria sighed and the rest of the team laughed at the sight.

"Ignorant. Unbelievably ignorant," she mumbled.

"Who do you think she got that from?" Gibbs asked as he raised an eyebrow at Tony.

"If it was stubbornness, I'd say Ziva, but because it's pure ignorance, I'd have to say Tony."

Everyone laughed apart from Tony, who was pouting a little at the remark. Maria gave up on trying to feed TJ and turned to Kate, who was staring at her food after taking a few spoonfuls. Maria lifted her spoon and scooped a bit of baby food on it, trying to feed Kate. Kate frowned and attempted to back away, keeping her mouth clamped shut. Abby smiled.

"So that's where Ziva's stubbornness went…" Maria thought aloud.

Everyone laughed as Maria put down the spoon down and turned to her own food. Abby was the next one to speak.

"So, when are you going to plan your wedding then, Ziva?" she asked.

Ziva put down her fork. "Well, Tony and I –"

"Actually, it was just her," Tony interrupted.

"Fine then. I thought that we should wait a little longer to have a big wedding. At least until the twins are a little older."

"You aren't gonna get married?" Jimmy asked in shock.

"Oh, we are still going to get married. We will just have a small wedding, just us."

"And my frat bros."

"Yes, and your frat brothers."

"You're gonna have a small family wedding?" McGee asked.

"Yes," Tony and Ziva answered automatically.


	9. The Presents

The team finished their Christmas dinner and headed to the living room to gather around the large Christmas tree that Tony had just about managed to bring in, with the help of Ziva and Maria for the decoration. The floor underneath the tree was littered with presents for Kate, TJ and Maria, and the smaller few being for Tony and Ziva, as well as the team's presents.

The team huddled up on the sofa and Ziva reached for the first present as Maria brought Kate and TJ into the living room. She read the label.

"This one is for Maria."

"Lucky her, she gets to open the first present," Tony said. Just as Maria was about to open her present, the doorbell rang.

"Stupid carol singers," Tony mumbled as he got up to open the door. Ziva sat him back down.

"I will do it. We do not want to scare these singers like you did last time." She got up and headed for the door before Tony could argue any more.

When she opened the door, the cold winter breeze hit her and she smiled at the 'carol singers' that had turned up at the door. Andy, Katie and Rebecca were standing there in fluffy red and white coats and David, Mark and Arif were behind them. Mukta was standing beside the group, looking perfectly happy to ring a bell in time to the music. Andy cleared her throat before leading the group into a carol.

"We wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!" they sang. "Good tidings we bring, to you and your King, we wish you a Merry Christmas, and a happy new year!"

Ziva chuckled at the grumpy expressions on the men's faces. As soon as they finished singing, David put his hand out.

"I get paid to do this stuff," he said simply. Ziva laughed and moved aside to let them in. She laughed even more when she saw Matt lugging a huge sack of presents up to the door.

"Are you alright there, Matt?" she called out.

"Yeah, just peachy," he answered sarcastically as he continued to lug the sack in. Ziva heard a squeal, and a huge "MERRY CHRISTMAS!" from the living room. She smiled and shut the door behind Matt as he finally entered the house. She helped him drag the sack down the corridor, and they made it just in time to hear Tony ask, "Where are the presents, then?"

"Right here," Matt groaned as he dragged the sack into the room. Tony stared in shock at the huge sack of presents that he was dragging.

"For me? Oh you shouldn't have," Tony smiled. Everyone laughed.

"How many presents have you got in there, anyway?" Maria asked.

"Why don't we open the sack and find out, eh?" Tony asked as he moved nearer to the sack. Matt pushed him away.

"Or we can wait until you've opened all the presents under the tree first, since you've already started," he pointed out. Tony sighed.

"Fine then. Carry on opening your present, Maria."

* * *

Andy placed her toy for TJ in front of the 7 month old baby girl. TJ stared at the square-shaped object in confusion before reaching for it and scratching the wrapping paper, trying to open it. She pouted in frustration before starting to cry. Andy came forward and ripped the present open a little so that TJ could rip the rest. TJ's crying lessened to a whimper and soon became a laugh as she started ripping the paper. She scrunched the coloured paper and un-scrunched it over and over again. A colourful play-set was left untouched as she concentrated on the paper. She turned to Tony and held up the paper in front of him.

"Dada!" she cried as she showed him the paper. Everyone laughed.

"She doesn't even want the toy, she just likes the paper!" Katie pointed out.

"So, when exactly is the wedding, Ziva?" Rebecca asked. Ziva thought about it carefully.

"Maybe in June or July," she answered. "We have not thought about it yet."

"What do you mean 'we'?" Tony demanded. "I didn't even know about it until today!"

David patted his shoulder sympathetically. "Get used to it, buddy."

"One weekend we should all go dress shopping for the wedding!" Katie exclaimed.

"Oh, yippee," Mukta deadpanned.

"Oh, come on, Mukta! It'd be fun!"

Maria reached for another present from under the tree as the women argued. "This one's for me!" She ripped off the wrapping paper and gasped in shock at the present inside. "A Blackberry?"

"Remind me why your sister is so spoilt again?" Tony whispered to Ziva.

* * *

Ziva and Tony picked up the twins from where they lay in their sleeping carriers in the living room before they went upstairs to put them in their cribs. It had been an exhausting day for them both. What had been originally planned to be a small family day had turned into a huge 'family' party. Tony's frat brothers had turned up on his doorstep last minute, and the amount of presents received for Christmas was unbelievable. Tony smiled at Maria's expression when she had opened the present containing the laptop that he and Ziva had tried so hard to get. As soon as he had laid TJ in her crib and tucked her in, he went and checked on Maria, who was still up and playing the Sims 3 game Andy had got for her on the laptop. He knocked on the door, getting Maria to acknowledge his presence. She turned and smiled at him.

"Hey, Tony."

"Lights out, Maria. It's late."

She pouted a little before ending her game and turning the laptop off. "Alright then."

"You look exhausted," Tony pointed out. "Get to bed, you need the sleep."

Maria smiled at him sleepily before running up to him and hugging him. "This was the best Christmas ever. Thanks, Tony."

Tony was a little taken aback by the gesture, but smiled and ruffled her hair anyway. "It's cool Maria. Just get to bed and we can talk in the morning."

Maria let go of him and walked over to her bed and lay down, falling asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. Tony was about to switch off the light when Ziva walked past him, sitting on the edge of Maria's bed and wishing her goodnight with a kiss to the cheek. Ziva got up and stood beside him, wrapping her arms around his waist as he switched off the light. The couple walked back to their room and quickly got ready for bed.

Tony lay on the bed, his arms wrapped around Ziva's waist as her back was settled against his chest. He kissed her hair.

"Buenas noches, Ziva, _**(Good night, Ziva)**_" he whispered.

"Bonne nuit, Tony, _**(Good night, Tony)**_" she replied before she settled into a deep sleep.


	10. The New Year

Tony and Ziva sat in the garden, watching the stars in the sky. Ziva sighed and leaned on Tony's shoulder.

"The stars are beautiful, yes?" Ziva sighed.

"Yeah, but not as beautiful as you," Tony pointed out. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "And soon we're gonna see fireworks."

It was New Year's Eve, and Tony and Ziva had decided to watch the fireworks from outside their house, in the large yard that they had. Maria came outside with three mugs of hot chocolate and placed them on the ground beside the couple.

"Thanks," Tony smiled as he picked up his hot chocolate and had a sip. "Mmmm."

Ziva picked up her mug and took a sip, smiling as Maria sat beside her and joined them in their midnight watch. Maria took her mug and took a small sip, crossing her legs as she sat. She looked up at the sky.

"Wow," she whispered loudly. "I never really had the chance to look at the stars like this before, apart from the time when Ari…" She paused and looked over to Ziva, who was looking at her. "Ari always had a thing for stars."

Ziva smiled. "Yes, I remember. One time, Ari took Tali and I outside and we camped in our garden. I was not much of a camping trip, but we did not sleep in tents. The whole night we stared at them, and Ari would tell us stories and show us correlations in the sky. It was… what you call breath-taking."

Tony looked at the two girls. He had never had a brother who taught him about the stars, or took him camping. He sighed. Maria looked over at Tony.

"You ok, Tony?" she asked. Tony just nodded and looked back up at the stars. Maria smiled at another memory.

"I remember once I stayed with this family," she said. "For New Year's Eve, they would all go over what happened in the past year, good or bad, and be thankful that they're still here. And then they'd spend New Year as a family, no matter what."

Tony looked at his watch. It was 11:30pm. "So, who's gonna start?"

Maria put down her mug. "My year's been… eventful. January was probably the most eventful month, when I was hired as a hit-man by my brother's ex-girlfriend. If it weren't for that, I wouldn't have met my sister at all. Then there was February and March, when I met some of Tony's old friends, and Tony made that 'Big Mistake'. In April I went for Katie's birthday party, and that was pretty awesome. May was when the twins were born, I got an A+ on my assignment, and I got three detentions in Math alone…"

"Why?" Tony asked.

"Little idiot sitting behind me. I don't remember much about June, but in July I had the most awesome birthday ever. August was alright, but there was nothing new there, apart from Andy and David's wedding. September was the usual, I start school again, make more friends and more enemies. Not much in October, in November, Tony spilled the beans to my crush…"

Tony let out a short laugh. "You got me back for that, though."

"And there was the Thanksgiving Dinner with the team and everyone. And finally, December, where I've managed to have the best Christmas ever with people I've known for just under a year. Ziva?"

Ziva thought about it quietly. "I will start in January, when Maria first came after me and I found out that I had a little half-sister. Around that same time I got engaged to a wonderful man…"

"Ziva, this is the time you take to remember stuff, not suck up to Tony," Maria joked. Ziva chuckled.

"Alright, alright. February was probably very tense, because of Tony's 'Big Mistake'…"

"Does everyone have to bring that up?" he whined.

"Yes!" both girls answered sharply.

"In March I met some of Tony's college friends, and they were lovely to meet. The house got done around that time, I remember. In April, Matt and Rebecca got engaged, and in May Tony broke his hand about a week before the twins were born, and the twins were born a week after. That was the most terrifying yet amazing experience I have ever had. In July we had Maria's birthday, and exactly a month later Andy got married to David. Not much happened until November, when we had that amazing Thanksgiving dinner and TJ decided to go missing. A few weeks later she decided to go missing again, and that's when she said her first word. Then there was the Christmas dinner, and finally I end here, sitting under the stars with my future husband and my little sister."

Both girls turned to Tony and waited for him to start. He took a deep breath.

"I'm gonna start in February, because everyone's started in January and we already know what happened then. That was probably the most awkward month ever, because of my 'Big Mistake' and everything. March was pretty cool, meeting all of my frat bros again. April was kinda nice, going to Rebecca's birthday party and having the 'Food fight of all food fights'. That was epic…"

"Not for me," Ziva pointed out. "I had to clean all of the food off you."

Tony smiled. "Yeah, the memory's still there. May was eventful: first I broke my hand, then there was your 'leaving' party, and finally having the twins. June was boring. July was… awkward. I mean me puking all over that innocent bystander."

"That was hilarious!" Maria laughed. Ziva joined her in her laughing and Tony pouted at them.

"No it wasn't. August was alright, going for the wedding. I dunno about September, or October, but November was pretty cool. We had Thanksgiving dinner with everyone, and Maria and I had those pranks and paybacks. And finally…"

"Thank goodness," Maria sighed.

Tony frowned at her. "And finally I come to December, where TJ went missing and ended up in my rucksack on our way to a crime scene, she said her first word, Kate said her first word, and we had the most amazing family Christmas ever." He wrapped his arm over Ziva's shoulder again. "And my year has been perfect because I got to spend it with my beautiful future wife." He kissed her lightly on the lips and smiled.

"Aw, you little suck-up!" Maria smiled.

"Just because you're jealous," Tony teased. Maria raised her eyebrows at him.

"Please, do not argue. Tonight would be perfect without any arguing," Ziva begged. Tony grinned cheekily.

"Is Ziva actually begging?" he asked. Maria stifled a laugh and Ziva glared at him.

"Tony, do not make me hurt you."

"What time is it, Tony?" Maria asked. Tony looked at his watch.

"Ten seconds to midnight… nine… eight…"

Maria and Ziva joined in. "Seven… six… five… four… three… two… one…"

Fireworks went up and lit the night sky. Maria gasped as she watched the different colours exploding – red, blue, white, pink, purple, green, yellow, orange and more. Ziva moved closer to Tony and watched in amazement at the different coloured fireworks. Tony looked down and smiled at the looks of amazement on both the girls' faces. Ziva looked up at him.

"Happy New Year, Tony," she whispered.

"Happy New Year, Ziva," he replied before pulling her in for their first passionate kiss of the year.


	11. February

**FEBRUARY**

Tony looked out of the window and watched as the moving van backed into the driveway of the house next door. He continued to watch as two figures got out of the front, a tall black man and an average heighted white woman. The black man had a lean figure although it was easy to tell he worked out by the amount of muscles he had. The woman had light brown hair which was tied back in a ponytail and bright green eyes.

The man opened the back of the van and pulled out a large box, carrying it into the house. The woman also grabbed a box, a little smaller than the one that the man carried, and took it into the house.

"Tony, would you stop staring out of the window, please?"

Tony turned to Ziva, who was standing behind him in an apron and holding a spoon which was covered in what Tony thought was Bolognese sauce.

"Ziva, we've got new neighbours!"

"So?"

"So, I'm trying to profile them!" Tony turned back to looking out of the window.

"If you want to profile them, why don't you go to meet them?" Ziva walked back into the kitchen to continue her cooking.

"Never use the direct approach!" Tony yelled out behind him. As he turned back to the window, he stared in shock at what he saw. Maria was standing outside talking to the woman as she got a box out of the van. Tony ran to the door and opened it.

"Maria! Come in now!" he yelled. Maria turned to him and nodded briefly before saying goodbye to the woman and following Tony inside. He pulled her closer to him as he shut the door.

"What are you doing?" he whispered furiously.

"Uh… greeting the new neighbours?" she replied.

"Why? They could be criminals!"

"Tony, only someone like you could think that." She walked into the kitchen and greeted Ziva before helping to set the table for dinner. Tony crossed his arms and leaned on the front door. He was about to go into the kitchen to help the girls when he heard a cry coming from upstairs. He sighed and ran upstairs into the twins' room, where TJ was sitting up sucking on her thumb and Kate was screaming at the top of her lungs. Tony picked Kate up first and was about to go downstairs to place her in her highchair before coming back when he heard a whine. He turned to TJ's crib where she was holding herself up by the gate and rubbing her eyes. She was looking at him wistfully. He sighed.

"Look, I can't carry you both downstairs at the same time," he sighed. TJ just whined at him again, this time reaching out for him as well. He sighed again and grabbed her as well before heading downstairs for dinner. Ziva took the whimpering Kate from his arms and placed her in the highchair. Tony placed TJ in her highchair and ruffled the little girl's hair to prevent her from whining. He watched Ziva take off her apron and go out into the corridor to get her coat on. He was puzzled.

"Where you going, Zi?" he asked.

"You mean where are we going?" she called back. "We are going to greet the new neighbours. Come on!" She opened the front door and stood outside, waiting for Tony.

Tony groaned as he got up and went to the coat rack to get his coat and shoes on. "Are you sure it's alright? I mean the neighbours–"

"Just shut up and go, Tony," Maria said, stopping him from arguing any more. Tony grumbled incoherently as he got his shoes and coat on and grabbed his keys.

"Do not get yours, I already have mine."

Tony tossed his keys back and followed Ziva outside, shutting the door behind him. He led the way to the new couple's house next door. As soon as he reached the door and raised his hand to knock, the door swung open, and a woman appeared at the door – the same woman that Maria had seen speaking to earlier that day. She raised an eyebrow at him. He put his arm down and smiled nervously.

"Hey, we're the neighbours," he said.

"I think I know that," she replied.

Ziva stepped forward. "We just decided to come and say hello, and welcome you into the neighbourhood."

"Oh, well, thanks." She moved aside. "Would you like to come in?"

Ziva cautiously stepped inside and Tony followed her, just as cautious as she was. The woman closed the door behind her and ushered the couple into the living room.

"My name's Daisy," she introduced herself. She held out her hand for Ziva to shake and she took it, shaking it firmly.

"I am Ziva. This is my fiancé, Tony." Ziva motioned at Tony. Daisy smiled at him, and he nodded his head.

"Honey! Didn't I tell you that we needed–" The tall man ran into the room and froze when he saw the two agents standing in his living room. He opened his mouth, but closed it again, not being able to think of anything to say. Tony recognized his face immediately, and just stared in shock. Ziva elbowed him in the ribs.

"Stop staring! It is rude!"

"You don't recognize him, then?" Tony pointed at the man.

"Who?"

"Him!"

"What about him?" Daisy asked. She looked to the man for an explanation. The man just stared at Tony.

"I… I remember him… from Andy and David's wedding…" Tony said, trying to remember.

"What?" Ziva asked, still confused. Tony suddenly remembered how he knew him.

"Your name's Jude, and you're… you're Andy's younger brother."


	12. Andy's Brother

Are you sure?" Daisy asked.

"Yeah, definitely."

"Do you know him?" she asked Jude.

"Yeah, I do. We talked, we joked, we kinda became mates," he replied.

"Wait, this is the man that you were talking to? The aspiring Physical Education teacher?" Ziva questioned Tony. Tony nodded.

"Aspiring?" Jude repeated.

"Yeah… you aren't a teacher yet, are you?" Tony teased. Jude just smiled.

"Would you like to stay for dinner?" Daisy asked. Ziva looked over to Tony, who looked pretty hungry even though he was trying not to show it.

"Yes, we would," she answered for the both of them. Tony gave Ziva a quick smile before turning back to Jude.

"So, what are we having?" Tony asked.

"Dunno. I think I'm making some sort of pasta. It's something my dad used to make me when I was younger," Jude answered as he went back into the kitchen. Tony followed him in and Ziva and Daisy sat on the nearest sofa. Ziva smiled at Daisy.

"For how long have you known…?" Ziva asked, not remembering Jude's name.

"Jude? I've known him since sixth form. We came to America together, we joined the same university, and we ended up moving in together. He proposed me last year, and we got married a few weeks ago in this really nice chapel in L.A." Daisy explained.

"That is nice." Ziva looked around the living room. There were many photos of Daisy and Jude all over the walls, all framed and some with other people. The photo that caught Ziva's eyes most was a photo of a teenage girl in glasses with her arm around someone that looked like her brother, and she seemed to be laughing at him. The boy was grinning wildly, as if he had just made a silly joke and was proud of being able to make his sister laugh. Ziva smiled at the picture.

"Who is that, in that picture?" she asked as she pointed at the photo on the wall.

"That?" Daisy asked. "That's Jude and his sister when they were younger. Jude was about thirteen in that picture."

"But he is taller than her!" Ziva exclaimed.

"It's been like that since he was eleven apparently."

Ziva chuckled lightly. Andy was older than him? Explains why she seems a lot more mature. Suddenly there was a yelp from the kitchen. Ziva stopped laughing and gave Daisy a worried look, which she returned. Both women got up and rushed into the kitchen, where Tony was wiping himself down with some napkins. Jude was just sighing and laughing as he stirred the pasta in the large sauce pan.

"I told you to be careful with the water," he laughed. Tony just frowned.

"Yeah, but you didn't tell me that it was BOILING HOT water," Tony pointed out.

"That would've helped, but I thought you'd see the steam coming off the water. Of course, you didn't."

"What are you trying to say then, Jude? Are you calling me stupid?"

"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not."

"I'd love to see what happens if he is," Daisy whispered.

"Same here," Ziva replied.

"I asked you a question, and I expect you to answer it properly," Tony said to Jude.

"Yes, master," he replied sarcastically. Tony rolled his eyes at him.

"Now, I'll repeat the question just for you – Are. You. Calling. Me. Stupid?"

"Yes, because only someone as stupid as you would actually think that I'm so stupid that I didn't understand the question."

Tony slammed the napkins on the counter and moved to attack Jude when he suddenly turned and held up the spoon he was using to stir the pasta, right in Tony's face.

"Now there, not-so-young man, we don't want you getting hurt just visiting the neighbours now, do you?"

"Getting hurt?" Tony laughed. "How on earth are you gonna hurt me?"

"I'm a black belt in Judo. One more move and I'll flip ya."

Tony looked at his face and scanned it to check whether he was joking. When he realized he wasn't making a joke, he took a nervous step back and held his hands up in surrender. "I won't make you mad anymore."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"Pinky swear?"

"How old do you think I am?" Tony asked worriedly.

"Five. Or six. Depends on how you act."

"I'm forty-one."

"Holy moley! Grandpa alert!"

Ziva and Daisy couldn't help laughing at Tony's hurt expression. He leaned against the counter and frowned, crossing his arms over his chest.

"That wasn't funny," he said, attempting to defend himself.

"That's what you think," Jude pointed out as he went back to stirring the pasta. He hummed to himself and started doing a little dance as he continued to cook. Tony stared at him in shock.

"You weirdo," he stated.

"Don't care," Jude replied. "It's me, deal with it."

* * *

Tony picked up the fork and had a mouthful of the pasta in the bowl in front of him. He chewed it for a few seconds before smiling.

"Wow," Tony exclaimed as soon as he swallowed it. "This is really good!"

"At least someone acknowledges that I can cook." Jude gave Daisy a pointed look.

"I'm telling you, that food was raw. I couldn't eat it."

"It was one time!"

"No, you kept doing that every week for about a month, when it was your turn to cook."

Jude smiled sheepishly. "At least I didn't kill you or make you ill."

"Yeah, you're real lucky I didn't get poisoned. If I did, you'd be dead by now."

Ziva chuckled at the couple's bantering. It reminded her so much of her and Tony, before she got pregnant and engaged to him. She looked over to Tony, who was watching the arguing couple with amusement.

"At least I can cook now," Jude pointed out.

"Just about. You only cook food to do with pasta."

"I can make rice and curry!"

"That's the only other food you can cook."

"Hmph." Jude turned back to his food and started eating it, trying to ignore Daisy's smirk. The rest of the meal was eaten in quiet, apart from the occasional conversation. After the meal, Tony looked at his watch.

"Zi, look at the time. We should be going." Tony took Ziva's hand and they got up to leave. Daisy and Jude followed them to the front door to see them off.

"It was great meeting you," Daisy said as she opened the door for the leaving couple.

"Yes, it was nice to meet you too," Ziva agreed.

"We should do it again sometime," Jude said.

"Yeah, but maybe without the death-threats," Daisy pointed out.

They all laughed and nodded. Ziva gave Daisy a quick hug.

"We will see you around, yes?"

"Yeah, sure."

Ziva took Tony's arm and let him lead her out of the door, waving at their neighbours as they walked down the driveway and towards their own home, right next door. Tony smiled as he took Ziva's keys from her and opened the front door. The house was unusually quiet for 7 in the evening. Tony was just about to mention how quiet it was when there was a squeal from the kitchen. He sighed as he handed the keys to Ziva and headed upstairs.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"Whatever's going on in the kitchen, I don't want to get involved," he answered before heading into their bedroom.

Ziva sighed and headed into the kitchen, where TJ seemed to be playing in a puddle of water. Ziva noticed that the water was coming from an overflowing sink, but she was in too much shock to do anything about it. Just then, Maria came into the kitchen from the playroom and gasped at the overflowing sink.

"Oh crap," she sighed as she ran to turn off the tap.

"What happened?" Ziva asked. It was only then that Maria noticed Ziva was back.

"Oh… Ziva… well… uh…" Maria racked through her brain for an excuse. "Dio mi aiuta, _**(God help me)**_" she murmured as she came up with nothing but the truth.

"Maria?" Ziva prompted.

"Je ne me souviens pas _**(I do not remember)**_" she finally squeaked.

Ziva sighed. "Bien, il n'a pas d'importance maintenant. _**(Well, it does not matter now.)**_" She picked TJ up off the floor. "Je prévois la pièce pour être propre quand je retourne._** (I expect the room to be clean when I return.)**_" She walked out of the room and carried TJ upstairs to clean her up and get her ready for bed.

Maria sighed as she looked at the mess in the room. "I'm so dead."


	13. The Case, Part 1

Tony walked into the bullpen to see McGee already sitting at his desk. He sighed.

"I'm late again, aren't I?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"Ya think, DiNozzo?" Gibbs called out from the catwalk.

Tony winced as a few seconds later a hand collided with the back of his head. "Sor– I mean I got held back this morning boss. TJ's a daddy's girl and wouldn't let go of me. Kate's just an attention seeker."

"I thought TJ was the attention seeker?" McGee asked.

"Kate's one hell of a screamer, and therefore an attention seeker," Tony pointed out. McGee nodded in understanding.

Gibbs raised his eyebrow at Tony. "No excuses, DiNozzo. Get in early tomorrow."

"Yes boss." Tony sat down at his desk as Gibbs went for a coffee run.

"So how are things going at the house, Tony?" McGee asked.

"Oh, just great," Tony replied sarcastically. "Kate crying, TJ being noisy and active, Maria just taking the – excuse my language – piss and getting on my fucking nerves. And then there's Ziva with her death threats that you aren't sure whether she'll carry out or not. This morning I was so mad that I chucked Maria's bag out the window and she called me an asshole. My family is doing absolutely great, thank you very much."

McGee just stared at Tony in shock, afraid to say anything that could possibly set Tony off on another rant. Tony turned back to his work and realized he had quite a few emails in his inbox. Before he could open them, Gibbs had returned to the bullpen.

"Grab your gear! Dead Petty Officer."

Tony grabbed his bag and slung it over his shoulder before following Gibbs and McGee into the elevator. Gibbs turned to Tony as they stood in the elevator.

"So, DiNozzo, how your family?" he asked, a smirk creeping onto his face.

Tony glowered at him all the way to the truck.

* * *

Tony snapped photos of the dead Petty Officer, lying sprawled on the ground with bullet holes in his head, arms and torso. He grimaced at the sight.

"Ever seen anything that serious, Tony?" McGee asked when he saw the expression on his face.

"Uh, I think so," Tony answered, unsure of whether he was right or wrong. "All the baby stuff has fogged over my memory."

"McGee!" Gibbs called out.

"He's Petty Officer Ryan Hills, aged 28. Comes from California, has two brothers and is currently living with his parents in Washington."

"Looks like he got killed by multiple gunshots, boss," Tony pointed out.

"Ya think, DiNozzo?"

"What have we got here?" Ducky asked as he joined the group surrounding the dead Petty Officer. "Ah, my poor fellow, what on earth happened to you?"

"Witnesses say that there were a series of gunshots, boss," McGee said. "Whoever killed him, either he was fighting back or there was more than one of them."

"We can check that using any security footage we find around here," Tony added.

"Good to see your brain's still working, DiNozzo," Gibbs said as he headed for the Charger. "Finish it all then come back to base!"

"Yes, boss!" both men called out. Tony went back to snapping photos of the crime scene and McGee went back to interviewing witnesses. As soon as they had finished and Ducky had placed the body in the body bag – with a little help from Jimmy – they got into the truck and headed back for the Navy Yard.

Tony sat in the driver's seat, beside McGee and Ducky. Jimmy was in the back, perfectly content with talking to a dead body.

"So, dear Anthony, how is that wonderful family of yours?" Ducky asked. Suddenly, Tony gripped the steering wheel so much that his knuckles turned white. Ducky stared at him in shock.

"Anthony? What's going on?" he asked.

"His family's giving him a headache," McGee explained. Ducky nodded in understanding.

"Maria or Kate?"

"Both of them, Ducky. TJ's just being TJ, and Ziva's threatening to kill me every day. To be honest, this isn't the way I'd like to start my February," Tony sighed.

"What about the neighbours?" McGee asked.

"They're… alright. They keep the noises to a minimum." Tony smirked as he realized what he had said. McGee smiled as well, partially because he was glad Tony wasn't mad anymore and that his knuckles were returning to their original colour.

"Typical Tony…" McGee murmured.

* * *

"What you got?" Gibbs called out as he strode into the bullpen.

"Petty Officer Ryan Hills was killed in a gun fight at about 11 o'clock on Thursday night." McGee tried to scan the page and find more information. Gibbs started to get annoyed.

"Tell me something I don't know, McGee."

"Uh…" McGee picked up the plasma remote and got more information onto the screen. "He wasn't killed fighting for his life, boss. Apparently he was trying to defend a kid from being attacked by a gang. The kid's gang then came along and tried to beat up the other gang, and they got into a big gunfight. The kid apparently tried to get away and the Petty Officer was protecting him, and the Petty Officer got shot." He brought up a video on the screen. It was a security feed from one of the buildings nearby. Tony squinted at the video on the screen.

"Hold on, stop the video," he said suddenly. He snatched the remote out of McGee's hands and zoomed in on one of the teenagers' hoodies. He pointed at an icon on the hoodie.

"I've seen that somewhere before," he told them. "McGee, remember that time we went to grab some coffee at that coffee shop five minutes away?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"You remember those kids that kept hanging around outside with those dark hoodies on?"

"Uh… I think so."

"That was the logo on them."

"You sure?"

"No, McGee, I just felt like saying something stupid to get your attention."

McGee rolled his eyes. "Alright, I get it." He thought about it for a second. "Do you think they'll still be out there?"

"The owner said they hang out there every day."

"Well, don't just stand there. Go after them," Gibbs turned to them and said it as if it were obvious. McGee and Tony grabbed their guns and holsters before heading to the café.

* * *

"Marco!" Tony called out as he entered the coffee shop. The man at the counter looked up to see who was calling him. He smiled when he saw it was Tony.

"Ah, Tony! What's up?"

"Work."

Marco suddenly turned serious. "What d'you want?"

McGee stepped forward and showed Marco a photo of the kid that they had seen getting attacked on the security camera. "You know this kid?"

"Yeah." Marco pointed at the large window to the right of the men, where a young teenager sat outside reading a magazine of some sort. Tony nodded at McGee and they both left the building, turning into an alleyway that led to the side of the restaurant that the child was on. The kid was still reading the magazine, head bowed down and their short hair covering their facial features. Tony tapped the kid's shoulder.

"Hey, buddy, can we talk to you for a second?" Tony asked. The kid just ignored him.

"Dude, can we talk?" Tony asked again. This time the kid looked up at him.

"Do I look like a 'dude' to you?" they asked in a feminine voice. McGee stared in shock.

"Wait, you're a girl?"


	14. The Case, Part 2

Uh, duh? What else do I look like?"

McGee blushed lightly. Tony held back a laugh.

"So then, dudette, can we talk?" he asked her.

"Let me think… no."

Tony stared at her in shock. "Why?"

"My brother told me not to talk to the Feds. Says you can't trust 'em." She got up to leave them and walk off.

"But you're allowed to talk to a Marine?" McGee asked.

The girl froze. She span to face them. "How d'you…"

"Just come with us, young lady." Tony held his hand out for the girl to take. She took his hand and let him lead her to their car. McGee followed behind, picking up the magazine and taking it with him before joining the two in the car.

* * *

Ziva entered the bullpen at around 2pm, expecting Tony and McGee to be sitting at their desks and messing around. She was surprised when she didn't see them there. Instead she saw Gibbs, reading something whilst sipping his coffee.

"Gibbs? Where are Tony and McGee?" she asked. Gibbs looked up at her.

"Getting a witness. We've got a case," he replied bluntly.

"Ah." Ziva sat down at her desk and made sure that everything was still there. Gibbs watched her. He had expected her to just say hello to Tony and leave, maybe bringing him some lunch, but it seemed like she was preparing herself to work. He sighed and turned back to what he was reading. Tony would deal with her when he got back.

Just then, the elevator dinged, and Tony came out guiding a young teenage girl past the bullpen. Just as he was heading past the bullpen, he noticed Ziva at her desk.

"Take her down to interrogation," he told McGee, before handing him the girl and heading over to Ziva. He leaned down on her desk and glared right at her. "What are you doing here?" he demanded.

"I got bored, so I decided to come into work. Do not worry about the twins; they are being taken care of by Mukta at her nursery daycare." She was about to get on with her work when Tony lifted her chin to look into his eyes.

"You aren't meant to be at work," he stated.

"I do not care," she replied, "and I can take care of myself very well. I got bored at home after leaving the twins with Mukta."

Tony raised an eyebrow at her. "That makes more sense."

McGee came back into the bullpen. "Tony, you gonna interrogate her?"

Tony turned to look at Gibbs. Gibbs just looked back at him over the rim of his reading glasses. Tony gave him a pointed look.

"If you want to, DiNozzo," Gibbs said, breaking the silence. Tony just nodded before heading to the interrogation room.

* * *

As Tony entered the interrogation room, he couldn't help but notice the relaxed position the young girl was in. She had her legs crossed, and was reading the same magazine that she had been reading near the alleyway, where he and McGee had found her. He sat down at the table opposite her, placed his notebook down on the table and waited for her to notice him. When she didn't answer, he cleared his throat.

"Speak, man," she said, not looking up from her magazine. "I heareth."

Tony snorted in amusement. "Ok, I'll start from question one. What's your name?"

"Terry." She put down her magazine and looked up at Tony. It was then that he noticed her bright blue eyes, which contrasted to her scruffy short light brown hair.

"Well then, Terry, can you tell us about what happened?"

"I think it was about 10:30. I was just goin' about my business, drinkin' Coke and readin' my magazine when I met some guy walkin' down the street. He started askin' questions like why I was out so late and where my parents are."

"Where are your parents?"

"They're dead. My brother's the only trusted family left."

"Trusted?"

"I hate my sister."

"Ah." Tony gave her a look as if to say, 'continue'.

"Yeah, so we was chattin' and stuff as we were walkin', and then I realized we weren't near home. We was in some other territory, and then I recognized the buildings and everything. My brother told me not to go there, ever. Then some kids came up to us, and I recognized the hoodies they was wearin'. Then they attacked us, with guns 'nd all. The guy protected me, 'nd I used my cell to call my brother. Just as he came, that other gang's leader came and started kickin' that guy who helped me. My brother tried to shoot 'im, but he kept missin'. Eventually he shot that guy a bunch o' times and killed 'im. Then his gang left. My brother tried to help the guy, but it was too late. He was dead, so my brother took us and ran off, so it looked like he hadn't been there. Me, bein' a genius and all, told 'im that if the cops was smart enough they'd find all our blood DNA."

Tony nodded and took all the information down in note form. "Do you know the name of the killer?"

"Killer?"

"The leader."

"Dunno. My brother knows, though."

"And who's your brother?"

"His name's Kaden. Dunno where he is exactly, but he should be hangin' around that café I was near. He tells me to stay there all the time, and he's only gone to get breakfast and dinner. The café owner gives us lunch."

Tony smiled at her and got up to leave the room when she grabbed his arm. He turned to look at her.

"Please don't kill him. I don't wanna live with my sister," she begged. Tony nodded.

"We just want to talk to him, don't worry." He smiled at her again as she let go of his sleeve and sat back down in her seat. He left the interrogation room and closed the door behind him, watching McGee as he walked up to him.

"We gonna get Kaden now?" he asked. Tony nodded. Just as McGee turned to leave, he put a hand on his shoulder.

"Ziva's driving," he told him. He saw McGee's face pale and couldn't help smirking as McGee headed back to the bullpen to get Ziva.

* * *

McGee gripped the door handle as Ziva sped down the streets of Washington D.C.

"Are you sure this is the right way, McGee?" she asked, turning to look at him briefly.

"No, I think you missed the turning like, two miles back… KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE ROAD!"

Ziva turned the steering wheel hard, making the car do a 360 before braking in the middle of the road. "I would not have missed the turn if you had told me to turn," she said in a low, deadly voice, "or if that stupid GPS of your would work properly."

"Don't blame my GPS for something that was clearly your fault."

"My fault? MY FAULT? How is it my fault?"

"You drove!"

"I did not ask to drive!"

"You're right. Let's just blame this all on your husband, then. Correction – FUTURE husband."

"Do NOT bring my future husband into this!"

"Too late."

"McGee!"

"Look, Ziva, we're not helping anyone sitting here arguing in the middle of the road. In fact, we're causing a load of traffic."

Ziva looked into the rear-view mirror and noticed the line of traffic that was extending behind them. She sighed. "Which way?" she asked finally. McGee pointed back towards the way they had come from.

"And drive slowly this time," he added. Ziva nodded, although she had just disregarded what he had just said as a suggestion. She turned the car around quickly and sped back the way they had come. McGee clutched the door handle.

"I said slowly!" McGee cried.

"I am going slowly!" Ziva replied. "I am going slower than I had been going before!"

"You think 60 miles per hour is slow?"

"Yes."

McGee sighed. "Just turn at the next junction," he said as he continued to cling onto the car door handle for dear life.

* * *

The Charger pulled up outside the café where a group of teenagers were standing in dark hoodies. McGee and Ziva got out of the car and headed straight towards the group. One of the teenagers spotted them and signaled to the rest of the group.

"Oi! We have company!" he yelled. A group of boys, looking around sixteen or seventeen, came up to McGee and Ziva and blocked them off.

"What d'ya want?" one of them asked. McGee and Ziva flashed their badges.

"NCIS. We want to speak with your leader," McGee answered.

"What's NCIS?" another of the teenagers asked. Ziva sighed. She really didn't want to talk to a bunch of stupid teenagers.

"It stands for Naval Criminal Investigative Service, you dumbass."

McGee and Ziva turned to see a teenage boy, who looked about seventeen years old, standing behind them holding a crate of Coke cans in his arms. He was tall and quite muscular, with medium length strawberry blonde hair and bright blue eyes. He was glaring at the two agents.

"They're the guys that have my sister."


	15. Interrogation, And The truth About Jude

Kaden sat in Interrogation Room 2 whilst he waited for his interrogator to come in. He sat staring at the one-way mirror, tapping his fingers on the table sub-consciously. Suddenly the door opened, and Tony walked in holding a file and a couple of photos. Gibbs followed him and just stood in the corner of the room, watching the whole interrogation and silently daring Kaden to make a move on his agent or do a runner. Tony sat in the seat opposite him.

"Kaden," Tony greeted.

"Yeah?" Kaden asked. Tony placed the file on the table and opened it.

"Where were you at 10:30 on Thursday night?"

"Down at the store grabbin' some food for me and my sister."

Tony nodded. "What exactly happened from your point of view?" he asked as he got out his notebook, which also contained Terry's recount of events.

"I was down at the store when I heard from one of my guys that my sister had walked off with some stranger. I bought the stuff, chucked it in our apartment…"

"You have an apartment?" Tony asked.

"Yeah, but it's not safe so I tell my sis to stay outside the café where everyone can see her."

Tony smiled. For a gang leader this boy was really caring for her sister. "Go on," he urged.

"After I chucked the stuff in our apartment I ran down the street. Some guys told me which direction she'd gone in so I went that way. Then she called me and told me what was happenin'. I called the gang before runnin' after her and we met up around the café. We got our stuff and chased after her, and then we realized she was in enemy territory."

"Your rival gang?" Tony asked. He took a photo out of the file. It was a snapshot McGee had printed from the video. "Is this their leader?"

Kaden nodded.

"What's his name?" Tony asked.

"Dunno. I think it's Daley or somethin'."

"Or somethin'?" Tony asked, mimicking Kaden's voice.

Kaden frowned at him. "I'm sure it's Daley. Daley Jaheem. We used to be mates, till he stole my girlfriend."

Tony nearly laughed as he got up to leave. "It's usually the girlfriend who leaves, so he technically didn't steal her," he called out as he shut the door. He heard Kaden give a sarcastic, 'Ha!' as he walked off. Tony couldn't help smiling at the boy's sense of humor.

* * *

McGee and Ziva sat at their desks, searching for whatever they could find about Daley Jaheem. All they had found so far were a load of people with his name bearing no resemblance to him. Ziva sighed as she hit another dead end and looked at her watch. It was 11 o'clock.

"Found anything yet?" Tony asked as he entered the bullpen.

"No," Ziva and McGee chorused.

"Maria has picked up the twins, by the way," Ziva added. "She has taken them to Mukta's house with some supplies and they will be taking care of them until we get home."

Tony nodded.

"What did Abby find?" McGee asked.

"Blood from the crime scene matches many different bodies. Terry's, Kaden's and Daley's were DNA all found there." Tony sat down at his desk and joined Ziva and McGee in searching for the boy. McGee sighed.

"We're gonna be pulling another all-nighter, aren't we?" McGee asked.

"Yeah," Tony and Ziva sighed in unison. McGee groaned as he continued to search.

* * *

Tony woke to a loud beeping in the bullpen. He opened his eyes slowly and noticed it was McGee's computer that was making the noise. He scrunched up a piece of unused paper and threw it at him, hitting him on the head.

"What?" McGee mumbled.

"Tell your computer to shut up," Tony answered. Just as he put his head down to fall asleep again on his desk, McGee looked up at his computer. He stared in shock.

"Tony, I got a match."

"Mmhmm." Tony just ignored him and kept trying to get back to sleep.

"I'm being serious, Tony. I've got a match!"

The words took a little while to register in Tony's tired mind, but when they did, his head shot up. "You've got a match?"

"Yeah, that's what I just said."

Tony jumped up from his seat and ran to look over McGee's shoulder. It was written – or more like typed – clearly on the screen, 'Daley Jaheem – Match'. Tony whooped.

"What is going on?" Ziva asked groggily as she woke up. She saw the large smiles on Tony and McGee's faces and felt like she should be worried. "What is going on?"

"That's what I was going to ask, David," Gibbs said as he walked into the bullpen. Tony scrambled back to his desk.

"Whatcha got?" he called out.

"I've got a match, boss," McGee said. He pressed a few buttons to open the file he had found. "Daley Jaheem, aged eighteen. He has a single mother and a little sister, but his brother was killed a few years ago. Born in Boston, and moved down with his mom when she got divorced. Got kicked out of five schools as a kid. Leader of the South West Washington gang…"

"Hold on," Tony stopped McGee. "Where'd you find that information?"

"Um…" McGee pressed a few keys before a shocked look came onto his face. "FBI."

"You hacked into the FBI?"

"I'm not even sure I hacked into it properly."

"You've got that right."

The team turned to see Fornell headed towards them with two FBI agents following him. The two agents had their hats pulled low to conceal their faces. Gibbs and Tony glared at McGee.

"Never try to hack anywhere when you're half asleep again, McHacker," Tony warned.

"Why do you have information on Daley?" Ziva asked Fornell.

"He has something to do with one of the cases we're Investigating"

"I thought you were retired, Fornell?" Tony asked. "I mean, you're old enough."

"Retired don't mean old, DiNutzo."

"Care to give us a little insight Tobias?" Asked Gibbs in his usual Manner, which he normally had with Fornell

"Five Million Dollars Went missing From an Off-shore Bank Account. We traced the IP address back to a compiter Inside the Pentagon. Daley was the undercover operative for the FBI before he got arrested for Stealing A nintey thousand dolalr painting from a Museum he was working undercover in. He was the last one to see that money."

"Tobias...Is there-"

"No Gibbs"

"Boss?" asked a Confused McGee

Gibbs turned to McGee, who had called his name. "What?"

"What are we gonna do about the case? The FBI won't let me find out any more about Daley. And I'm not planning to hack into the FBI's server again."

Gibbs sighed. He knew what Fornell wanted. "Fornell, this a joint case now?"

"I believe so, Gibbs." Fornell smiled. "Meet my agents – Agents Jude and Daisy Mante."

"What?" Tony and Ziva watched in shock as the agents removed the hats from their heads. Sure enough, the young couple was standing there.

"Hi," Daisy greeted. Jude smiled at them.

"Great," Tony muttered. "The neighbours are here."


	16. The Brawl at the Bar

"McGee! Found anything on Daley yet?"

"Not yet, boss." McGee kept typing as he tried to find something that gave them a clue to where Daley would be.

"Ya know, you should try searchin' for stuff in the South West. That's where Daley's gang hangs out," Kaden pointed out.

The team had decided to let Kaden and Terry out, as long as they stayed in the building. Terry was down in Forensics with Abby at that moment, and Tony had managed to persuade Kaden into helping McGee find Daley's gang before they murdered another marine.

"I remember once last year they killed some innocent marine in our area," Kaden pointed out. "I think his name was Hawkins…"

"Petty Officer Marcus Hawkins?" McGee asked. Kaden nodded.

"That was one of our cold cases last year."

Kaden smiled. "Cool. The gang wears blue, I think. Blue or indigo."

"Alright." McGee typed in something and he got a hit. "Ok, boss. We've got a sighting on a group of teenagers in blue hoodies hanging around a bar in South West Washington."

"Ok. McGee, David, get going."

Fornell frowned. "What about my agents?"

"What about your agents?" Gibbs asked as McGee and Ziva got ready to leave.

"Jude, go with them," Fornell told them. Jude followed McGee and Ziva into the elevator.

"Good luck!" Tony called out. Daisy gave him a worried look.

"Why are you giving him luck?" she asked.

"She drives like a mad woman."

* * *

Jude gripped to the door and ended up sliding across the back seats as Ziva made another sharp turn, colliding with the door.

"Ow!"

"Stop whining. I am not that bad a driver," Ziva defended.

"For a woman," he added. Ziva glared at him through the rear view mirror.

"I'm sure Daisy's driving is worse than this."

"Are you sure?" McGee asked.

"Yeah."

Ziva made another sharp turn and sent Jude flying across the back seats again.

"Now are you sure?" McGee asked.

Jude rubbed his head. "Nope. Daisy's driving is definitely not worse."

"Next time, wear your seat belt," Ziva stated before skidding to a stop in front of the bar they were headed to. Jude just managed to prevent himself from hitting his head on the seat in front of him.

"On the way back, I'm driving," McGee said.

The trio got out of the car and grouped up around the front, looking for any signs of teenagers in blue hoodies.

"McGee, do you see anything?" Ziva asked.

"You mean the teenagers in hoodies? No." He turned to her. "Do you?"

"No, I do not."

"They've probably gone into the bar," Jude suggested. "Didn't want people getting suspicious of a group of teenagers that just hangs outside a bar for no specific reason."

"How did they get in, though? They're probably all under eighteen."

"If they're Daley's men, they've had their IDs forged."

"He has got a point," Ziva pointed out. She headed towards the bar entrance and McGee and Jude followed quickly.

* * *

The three agents entered the bar, only to find it was actually a club. Jude groaned.

"What is wrong?" Ziva asked.

"I hate clubs," he answered simply. He scanned around the room filled with partying teens. "No sign of the gang here. How about you guys?"

McGee looked around, searching for the blue hoodies. "Nope, can't find them."

"I see them!" Ziva pointed to a spot right in the far corner, where a group seemed to be drinking and laughing. McGee and Jude followed her line of sight and noticed they were all wearing blue hoodies.

"Is that the right logo?" Jude asked.

Ziva squinted to read them. "Yes, I believe so."

"Let's go, then." McGee led the way towards the rowdy group. When they got to the corner, McGee cleared his throat. The group looked up at them.

"We're looking for your leader," he told them. They all gave him a blank look.

"Daley Jaheem?" Jude clarified. Their eyes all widened briefly before they narrowed.

"It's the feds," one of the teens said. A group of the teens, all tall boys, rose up to try and intimidate them. "What do you want with Daley?"

"We would just like to speak with him," Ziva said.

"He ain't here."

"Where is he then?" McGee asked.

"None of your business. If you wanna talk to Jaheem, you've gotta talk to us first."

Jude sighed. "Look, we really didn't want to have to do this, but…" He punched one of the taller boys in the gut and grabbed the front of his shirt. "Where is Jaheem?" he asked in a deadly tone.

One of the other boys took this as a threat and aimed a punch square at Jude's head. Jude ducked before the punch could get him, and it hit McGee instead. Jude let go of the boy's shirt and punched the boy that hit McGee. McGee threw a punch hitting that boy as well.

Ziva stood back, watching the fight go on. One of the boys saw this and grabbed her, holding her arms behind her so that she struggled. This caught both Jude and McGee's attentions as they held the boys in headlocks and fended off the others.

"Leave us alone," the boy threatened, "and I won't hurt her."

McGee snorted. "Hurt her? She'll treat you like a piñata!"

The boy looked confused and loosened his grip slightly on Ziva. "What? How'll she do that?"

Ziva took this as an opportunity to break free and throw a few punches of her own. Within a few seconds she had knocked down three boys and was holding the boy that had held her 'hostage' by his collar, her face right in his, whilst at the same time not receiving a scratch. Jude stared in shock.

"Wow," was all he could say. McGee nodded.

"I know."

"I am ex-Mossad," Ziva stated plainly. "Now answer our question: Where. Is. Jaheem?"

The boy trembled under her gaze. "I… I…"

"I know you know, now tell me!"

"He said he was going downtown to do some business. Said there's a café down there where he's meeting someone. That's all he said."

Ziva dropped the boy and beckoned for the other two agents to follow her. They dropped the boys they had in headlock and followed Ziva out of the bar. McGee snatched the keys off her.

"I'm driving," he stated. Ziva shook her head and took back the keys.

"You cannot drive with one swollen, half-closed eye."

That was when McGee noticed the huge bruising just above his eye and touched it tenderly. He winced as the skin felt sore under his touch.

"I can drive," Jude offered.

"No," Ziva said sternly, "an FBI agent will not get caught driving an NCIS car."

"So you're driving? I'm not prepared to die!" Jude yelled. McGee sniggered. Ziva frowned at him.

"Now you are even less likely to live," she growled.

**Review! We'd love to hear what you think!**


	17. Catching the Criminal

Tony watched as Daisy sat on the floor in front of Ziva's desk, on her laptop. He was interested in what she was doing.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

Daisy looked up from the laptop. "Finishing off a report," she said quickly. Tony smirked.

"No you aren't," he said. "What are you doing?" He snuck over to behind her and looked over her shoulder. She was playing some kind of video game, he couldn't tell from where he was standing. "A video game? Does your boss know?"

"He does now." Fornell walked into the bullpen with Gibbs following him. Daisy quickly closed her laptop and set it aside.

"I was doing some catch-up work…"

"Uh huh," Gibbs said, obviously unconvinced. Daisy blushed.

The elevator dinged, and Ziva stepped out with McGee and Jude in tow. McGee held an ice pack on his right eye, and Jude had plasters on his face and was holding an ice pack to his forehead. Ziva leaned down and kissed Tony on the cheek when she got into the bullpen. Tony smiled.

"Hi, honey," he greeted.

Daisy smiled at the couple before looking up to her own husband. "Oh my!" she exclaimed.

Just then, Abby came bounding out of the elevator. She gasped when she saw McGee's bruises and sores. "Oh my gosh, McGee! You look–"

"Bad," Daisy butted in. Jude sighed and gave her a warning look.

"That's an understatement," Tony murmured. McGee and Jude glared at him.

* * *

"What'd you two get?" Gibbs asked as soon as Jude and McGee came out of the elevator.

"A bruise, a few cuts, and a trip to autopsy which I don't think I'd ever want to repeat," Jude answered as he sat on the edge of Tony's desk. Gibbs glared at him.

"He means that we've only got a vague idea of where he is," McGee answered whilst glaring at Jude.

"The boys said he'd be at a café downtown," Jude continued. "We don't know exactly which one, but we do know that he's meeting someone, so there's gotta be someone else there with him or someone suspicious waiting for him."

Gibbs nodded. "Good. Daisy, DiNozzo, grab your gear!"

Tony grinned as he grabbed his bag and headed for the elevator and waited for Daisy to catch up with him. Jude rolled his eyes at Tony's excited face.

"You'd better not flirt with her, dude, otherwise I'll kill you!" he called out. Tony just grinned as Gibbs entered the elevator and the doors closed.

When the elevator door closed, Daisy looked up at Tony. She noticed his grin. "Please don't do anything stupid, Tony," she sighed.

"Stupid? I wouldn't dream of it," Tony admitted unconvincingly. Daisy raised an eyebrow at him.

"You'd better not, DiNozzo," Gibbs warned.

Daisy noticed a thoughtful look on his face. "What are you thinking?" she asked. Tony just grinned at her. Warning bells went off in Daisy's head, and she gave Tony a warning look. Tony just smirked at her.

"What? Can't you trust me?"

"No," she answered quickly as they arrived in the garage.

* * *

"You seen them yet, DiNozzo?"

"Not yet, boss."

There was a short silence.

"Hey, boss, can I ask you something?"

"Whad'ya want, DiNozzo?"

"I was just wondering why I was stuck on my own. I mean, come on, boss, I'm dying of loneliness down here!"

Daisy snatched the microphone off Gibbs. "Because, Tony, you talk too much and we figured you'd be able to keep yourself company by talking to yourself."

Tony frowned from his hiding spot near the trash cans to the side of the café. "That's not fair!"

"Life isn't fair, DiNozzo. Deal with it." She handed the microphone back to Gibbs with a small smile on her face. Gibbs turned off the microphone.

"You like messing with DiNozzo, don't ya?" Gibbs asked, already knowing the answer.

"Hell yeah!"

"Boss? Boss!" Tony's voice came through the laptop on Daisy's lap. Gibbs turned on the microphone.

"Yeah, DiNozzo?"

"I see someone!"

Daisy took out her binoculars and looked over towards where Tony was. Two people, a male and a female, were standing outside the café discussing something.

"Two people," she started. She looked down at the picture that came up on her laptop, and then looked back over to the people. "One of them I recognize as Daley Jaheem. Gibbs, we've got them."

"DiNozzo, distract them," Gibbs ordered before he got out of the car. Daisy copied him, leaving her laptop in the back seat of the car.

Tony came forward from his hiding spot and walked casually towards the pair. He tapped the woman's shoulder. She turned to face him.

"Erm, hi, I'm kinda new here," he started. "Do you know all the sight-seeing places in this city?"

The woman smiled. "Well, I only know the Washington Memorial and the White house, but there are lots of really nice restaurants here, too."

"Thanks." Tony smiled at her and took in her appearance. Short red hair, with green eyes. She was an average height, about 5ft 7in, and was slightly curvy. He noticed the other male, the one he clearly recognized as Daley Jaheem, glaring at him. He looked over Daley's shoulder and noticed Gibbs and Daisy heading towards them cautiously.

The woman was about to turn back to her conversation when Tony started to talk to her again.

"One more question – do you know where the Navy Yard is?" he asked.

"The Navy Yard?" she repeated.

"Yeah, I'm Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo, I work for NCIS." He grabbed her before she could run off, but just as he was reaching for Daley, he sprinted towards Daisy and Gibbs.

Daisy grabbed him and stopped him. "Nuh-uh, Daley. You've been a bad boy." She cuffed him and handed him over to Gibbs.

"This is what you get for killing a marine," Gibbs whispered in his ear as Tony brought over the handcuffed woman.

"What's her name?" Daisy asked him. Tony shrugged.

"Ask her."

"What's your name?" Daisy demanded. The woman glared at her before answering.

"Carey Simmons."

"The daughter of Yvan Simmons?" Daisy asked in shock.

"Who's Yvan Simmons?" Daley asked.

"An international arms dealer," Daisy answered.

"Oh, great. Another one," Tony sighed as he forced Carey towards the Charger.

**Review!**


	18. Interrogation, and Punishments

Daley sat impatiently in the interrogation room, glaring at the one-way mirror in front of him. "Let me outta here!" he yelled. "I know you're in there!"

Tony, Daisy, Jude, Ziva and McGee just smiled from their spots in the observation room.

"How long before he goes mad?" Jude asked.

"Five minutes," Tony answered. "Although, with a kid like this, it could be sooner."

Jude chuckled. "Teenage boys are so explosive."

"I know, right?"

"You two were teenage boys," Daisy pointed out.

"Yeah? What's your point?" Tony asked. Daisy sighed and turned to Ziva.

"Men!"

"Not all men," Ziva retorted before looking at McGee. Daisy raised an eyebrow.

"Wanna bet?" she asked Ziva, her voice so low only Ziva could hear. They turned to where the guys were standing, and Jude and Tony were grinning at McGee.

"So, you and Abby, huh?" Jude asked, even though he already knew the answer.

"Yeah, I guess," McGee replied.

"Finally! How long did it take you two to get together?" Tony yelled excitedly.

"Not as long as you and Ziva," McGee mumbled.

"What did you say?" Tony asked.

"Nothing."

Tony nodded, even though he was unconvinced. "You an Abby go way back, don't you? It's like you were in love this whole time," Tony teased. "Love birds! Love birds! McGeek and Abby! McLover-Boy and Abby sitting in a tree…"

Jude decided to join in at this point.

"K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

"Would you two just shut up? At least I actually knew when I was in love, rather than waiting five years to find out the love of my life is pregnant before making a move!" McGee yelled.

Jude looked shocked, whilst Tony's face showed pure anger.

"What did you say?" Tony growled.

"You heard me! And I'm not afraid of you, DiLoser!"

"Shut the hell up McGee! At least I've found the love of my life!"

"Took you long enough!"

"At least I'm engaged!"

"So what? At least I plan to get married BEFORE I turn forty!"

"THAT'S IT!" Tony pounced at McGee and tackled him to the floor, nearly taking Jude down in the process. The pair got into a fight on the floor, and Ziva raised her eyebrows at the pair.

"I think I change my answer to all men," Ziva whispered to Daisy. Daisy sniggered as they watched the two 'grown' men fight on the floor, throwing weak punches and missing, like they were a bunch of four year olds fighting over a toy. They were just getting more vicious when Abby ran into the room.

"Ziva Ziva Ziva! I wanted to get here before Gibbs–" She froze at the sight of the two men on the floor. She frowned. "McGee!"

The two men froze, and McGee immediately recognized the black platforms that were positioned right above his head. They scrambled away from each other and stood up, McGee wincing as he noticed the glare from his girlfriend. "H-hi, Abby."

"You should not be wrestling with your teammate in any place but the gym! No coffee for you!"

McGee frowned. "Fine, no Caf-Pow! for you either."

Abby stared at him for a few seconds. "Fine, you can have coffee, but I'm disconnecting your computer for a month."

"Deal."

The pair shook on it before Abby turned to Ziva. "Aren't you gonna punish Tony?"

"That is a very good idea, Abby!" Ziva smiled as she turned to Tony. "No sex for a month."

"A month?" Tony couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Two months."

"Two months?"

"Three months. Do you want to make it four?"

"Tony," Jude whispered, "I'd shut up now if I were you. I don't think you can last that long."

Just then, Gibbs entered the interrogation room and put an end to the misery that Tony and McGee were going through. He sat at the table opposite the teenage boy and started going through a file that Fornell had given him earlier on. Fornell walked into the room not long after and sat in the corner, watching how everything was going to turn out. Daley just watched Gibbs go through the file, getting more frustrated the longer he waited.

"Aren't you gonna interrogate me anytime soon?" he demanded finally.

Gibbs looked up from the file and placed it on the table. "I dunno, you tell me."

"Look, I ain't done nuthin' bad, so can I go?"

"That's not what the FBI say." Gibbs opposed. "So you're gonna sit here until I say you can go."

Daley slumped back into his chair. "You ain't got nuthin' on me."

Gibbs smirked as he held up the file to read. "Killed two marines, involved in an international robbery, and has been hacking into the pentagon."

"Sounds like something to me," Fornell pointed out.

"You wanna go MIT?" Gibbs asked the boy.

"Yeah."

"You aren't gonna go with a criminal record like yours."

Daley's face paled. "What?"

"Hacking into the pentagon? That's around ten years, maybe more," Fornell explained.

"Hold on, wait! It wasn't my idea. She forced me to do it! She said that if I didn't help her, she'd kill me and my family! I really didn't want to!"

"Funny, she warned me that you'd say that," Gibbs said, smirking. "You offered to help once you found out, didn't you?"

Daley paused. "No."

"Liar," Fornell stated.

"I know," Gibbs said. "The kid just doesn't want to go to jail for that, so we'll put him in jail for killing the two marines."

"I wasn't there!" Daley yelled.

"Fine." Gibbs grabbed the folder and got up to leave the room. "You'll be in a lot more trouble if you're lying to me, Jaheem." Fornell followed him out. As soon as he got out, Kaden and Terry were waiting in the corridor. Gibbs was smirking at them.

"Don't touch me, Kaden!" Terry yelled.

"Oh, come on Terry. I was just havin' a little fun with ya…"

"Shut up!"

"Terry, it was a joke. C'me on! Light'n up!"

"Kaden, did you not hear me? Shut. Up."

Kaden just smiled at his little sister. "You're such a spoil sport."

Terry glared at him, and Kaden flinched and took a step back. Gibbs nearly burst out laughing at the sight of the seventeen year old boy flinching at the glare of his younger sister.

"Come on, you two." Gibbs lead the bickering pair into the observation room, where both the NCIS agents and the FBI agents were arguing over something Gibbs guessed was unimportant. He was right.

"Soccer is so much better than football!" Jude was yelling.

"No way!" Tony yelled back. "Football is the best!"

"You guys have got it all wrong! It's baseball that's the best!" McGee argued.

"No it isn't! Basketball rules!" Daisy argued back. Ziva just stood to the side, watching her teammates bicker amongst themselves. Gibbs gave Ziva a look as if to ask '_what's going on?_', and Ziva replied with a shrug. Kaden and Terry watched the bickering with amusement. Gibbs just sighed and turned as Fornell entered the room.

"So much for being adults," Fornell pointed out.

Gibbs rolled his eyes before letting out a sharp whistle. "Hey!"

The bickering stopped immediately.

"Move."

The agents moved aside and Gibbs stepped forward with Kaden and Terry. He pointed at Daley. "That the guy who shot Petty Officer Hills?"

Terry nodded. "I'm sure of it."

Kaden shrugged. "He had a gun, and he was pointing at the petty officer. I'm sure he did."

Tony smirked. "He's dead."

"No doubt about that," Jude commented.

**Review!**


	19. More interrogations, Men and The Thief

The team sat in the bullpen, chatting and messing around with Kaden and Terry. Kaden was with Tony and Jude, playing Tetris on Tony's phone and chatting at the same time, whilst Terry was with McGee and Daisy, playing some sort of logic game on McGee's computer with them. Ziva was on her phone, making a quick call to Mukta.

"Are you sure they are alright?" Ziva asked.

"_Yes, they're fine, Ziva. Stop worrying,_" came the reply over the phone.

"Fine then. Tell Maria and Arif that I said hello," she sighed in defeat.

"_Sure. Bye, Ziva._"

"Goodbye." Ziva ended the call just as Gibbs entered the bullpen. He handed Ziva a folder as he walked past her desk. Ziva picked up the folder.

"Why have you given me this, Gibbs?" she asked.

"You're interrogating Carey," he stated bluntly. Ziva raised her eyebrows and searched his face for any sign of a smirk or something to show he was joking, but she saw nothing.

'It's Gibbs, Ziva,' she thought. 'He would never do that to you… would he?' She took another suspecting look at his face and realized he was giving her one of his 'get on with it' looks. She smiled as she picked up the file and quickly headed down to interrogation. Tony stared after her.

"Where's she going, boss?" he asked, turning to Gibbs.

"To interrogate Carey Simmons," he answered bluntly. "If you wanna watch, DiNozzo, get moving!"

The teams shared quick glances before running to interrogation, leaving Kaden and Terry behind with Gibbs. Gibbs smiled at the pair.

"Hey, d'ya want pizza?" he asked. Kaden nodded eagerly, obviously hungry. Terry raised an eyebrow at her brother before agreeing to Gibbs' suggestion. Gibbs smiled at the pair before grabbing them and taking them to the nearest pizza parlor. Fornell met them at the elevator.

"Hey, where you going?" he asked.

"The pizza parlor," Terry answered. "We're hungry."

"Mind if I tag along?" Fornell asked. Gibbs rolled his eyes as Terry nodded and let him into the elevator.

"Any word of this gets out Gibbs, and I'll kill you," Fornell threatened. Gibbs smiled his rare smiles.

"I wouldn't dream of it, Tobias."

* * *

Ziva sat at the table, glaring at the woman in front of her. Carey simply glared back, trying not to flinch under her gaze. It wasn't until Ziva hardened her gaze that Carey finally had the sense to make herself seem weaker.

"Do you know **why** you are here, Miss Simmons?" Ziva asked as she opened up the folder in front of her on the desk.

"Uh, I thought that's what you were opening the folder for," Carey answered cheekily. One glare from Ziva shut her up completely.

"It says here that you were accused of hacking into the pentagon and ordering someone to murder another, which means you are basically accused of murder."

"I know that."

Ziva glared at her again and stood up. "Why did you do it?"

Carey shrugged. "For a friend."

"Why did you do it?" Ziva asked again.

"Like I said, I did it for a friend."

Ziva read her expression before standing up and leaning over the table. This woman was really testing her patience. "I will ask you politely one more time: Why. Did. You. Do. It?"

"And as I said before, I did it for a friend."

"Lies!" Ziva brought her face close to Carey's. "Tell me the truth," she growled.

"I don't have to," Carey bit back.

Ziva slammed her fist down on the table, shocking Carey and all four of the agents standing behind the one-way mirror. "Tell me the truth now, or so help me I will torture you until you do!"

Carey stared, eyes wide, at the interrogating agent. "Ok, ok, fine! There was this guy I met at a club I went to whilst Ryan was overseas. We had a few drinks, danced a bit, and we clicked. We dated a few nights before he actually started asking me."

Ziva had sat down by then. "Asking you what?"

"He started asking me for money. That's when I started thinking that he didn't really love me, but he kept making me love him again by buying me gifts, or more like robbing them for me. I asked my dad for the money once a week for about a month before he said he couldn't give me any more because he was broke. I had to find the money… somewhere else…" Carey looked at Ziva, waiting for her to speak.

Ziva stared at the girl, her dark eyes boring into the woman. "Please, continue."

"So I decided to try and hack into the… the…"

"The pentagon?" Ziva helped.

Carey nodded. "I was doing it at an internet café, so that I wouldn't get tracked back to any IP addresses or anything, and I made sure nobody could find out my bank account details. That's where Daley found me. Poor kid was stupid enough to get involved with me, and threatened me to stop otherwise he'd tell the cops. Obviously, I'd done some research on the gangs around before just to keep myself safe, and I told him that if he didn't work with me and shut up about it I would report the fact that he'd murdered his father and kill his family." Carey took a breather.

"We worked together for a few months," she continued, "getting the money like we were meant to, before this marine called Marcus Hawkins, Ryan's best friend, found out about it. Daley was the first to realize that he'd found out and he told me. I told him to do what he had to do to stop him from telling. I didn't know that–"

"That he'd kill him because of his occupation?" Ziva had her eyebrows raised now. The story was matching pretty well with Daley's and very convincible, but there was something missing from it.

"Yeah, that. Then Ryan came back. I didn't tell him about the guy but he found out anyway when he saw me hacking into the pentagon, and we broke up that night. I called Daley, and I… ordered him to kill Ryan. I had really hated Ryan after the break-up."

Ziva nodded. "Men can do that to you – being so trustworthy, but eventually finding a way to make you hate them." She knew that Tony was standing behind the one-way mirror, and she had only said that to annoy him. It was their, um, '_anniversary_'…

Suddenly something clicked in her mind. "Miss Simmons, what is the name of this 'guy' that you have been 'working' for?"

Carey narrowed her eyes at her. "I swore never to tell a soul."

"All that will be left of you will be a soul if you do not tell me."

Carey thought about it for a few seconds as she glared at Ziva. Could she trust this woman? She knew she would go to jail after this for committing a crime, but this could make it all better. Or it could make it worse. Either way, she'd be going to jail.

"Hamlet Hackett."

Ziva tensed at the sound of his name. As did the agents behind the mirror when they noticed her tensing. She grabbed the file and quickly left the room, slamming the door behind her. The four agents exited the observation room and met Ziva in the corridor, walking with her back to the bullpen.

"What's wrong, Ziva?" Tony asked. Ziva just ignored him, playing the name over and over again in her head. _Hamlet Hackett_. Where had she heard that name before?

When they entered the bullpen, the smell of pizza wafted up their noses. Tony and Jude's eyes opened wide as their stomachs grumbled. The two spotted the box on Tony's desk and grinned widely.

"Food!" they yelled as they ran for the desk and reached for the pizza box and opened it to find a meaty pizza inside. They both took out slices and devoured them hungrily. McGee grabbed a slice as they set the box back down on the table. Daisy smiled at the men's antics.

"Men will be men," she sighed. Ziva just nodded before heading to her desk and opening up a search on her computer. Tony looked over to her.

"Hey, Zi, honey, aren't you hungry?" he asked. Ziva just ignored him as he began to search.

"Ziva, the food's gonna go before you get a slice," Jude warned jokingly, smirking at Tony. Ziva still continued to ignore them as they tried to get her attention. Daisy decided to go over to her. She leaned over the side of her chair to get a look at the screen.

"Hey, Ziva, what ya doing?"

Ziva clicked on something before turning to Daisy slightly. "Do you know this man?" she asked as she brought up a photo.

Daisy looked at the photo, surprised, before answering. "Yeah."

"Who is he?" Ziva asked.

"That's an international thief that the FBI have been chasing for years. He's wanted in five different countries: Germany, France, Canada, England, and here in America. Last I heard he was on the run from MI6." Daisy looked at Ziva. "Why?"

"This is the man that Carey mentioned she was getting money for," Ziva explained. "His name is Hamlet Hackett." Daisy bit her lip and the men stared in shock.

"Wow, this is worse than when I 'accidentally' poured all of that juice on Sacks and got him stuck in the showers for a whole two days," Jude said. Tony and McGee smiled at him.

"You got him stuck in the showers?" Tony asked. "How?"

"The doors were 'magically' nailed and bolted shut from the outside, and since nobody uses them no one noticed until his mother called about not seeing him for a while."

"He still lives with his mother?" Tony and McGee burst into and fit of laughs. Jude joined them. Daisy and Ziva just shook their heads and the men.

"Fornell and Gibbs won't be happy about this," Daisy commented.

"We won't be happy about what?" Gibbs asked as he strode into the bullpen. Tony, McGee and Jude immediately stopped laughing.

"That we had all the pizza," Jude quickly covered up.

"We bought it for you, Mante, didn't you see the note?"

Jude picked up the post-it note on Tony's desk and quickly read it. "Oh."

"Idiot," Daisy mumbled. Ziva picked up the remote and pressed it, bringing a photo up on screen.

"Carey said that she was stealing money for one man in particular. We do not know the reason, but we know the man," she explained. Gibbs looked at her expectantly.

"Who is this man, Agent David?" Fornell asked.

"This man is Hamlet Hackett, the international thief," Daisy answered. "And before you ask, yeah it's the same man we've been chasing for the past three or so years."

"You've been chasing this guy since you got married?" Tony asked.

"Are you kidding me? He ruined our honeymoon just to search for this dude! And we were doing something very important!" Jude exclaimed.

"Like what?" Tony questioned, smirking. Daisy glared at Jude to prevent him from talking, and he got the hint. Tony looked over to Ziva.

"So, sweetcheeks, what should we do on our honeymoon?" he asked.

"Stuff," she replied, and Tony was momentarily stunned by the simple, one-worded answer that he wasn't expecting.

"What kind of stuff?"

"Stuff that you would do on a honeymoon, Tony."

"You mean like–"

"Tony, please do not go into graphic detail. There are children in the room."

It was only then that Tony noticed Kaden and Terry standing by the entrance to the bullpen, smirking. He quickly turned to the team.

"So, how are we gonna get him?" he asked no one in particular.

"Go to the meeting place, take him down, then arrest him," Daisy answered.

"If he's still alive," Jude murmured. The whole team turned to look at him.

"I want to get him back for ruining my honeymoon," he explained.

"How do you know there's a meeting place?" Fornell asked.

"There must be a way for him to get the money, as wiring it all into one account would get suspicious," Ziva explained.

"We don't even know where the meeting place is," McGee pointed out.

"Did you think we would be letting Carey go into jail with all that information still not revealed to us, McGee?"

"No, I just thought–"

"Then let me do my job, and be quiet."

McGee frowned at Ziva. "How do you know she's gonna tell us where the meeting place is?"

Ziva went to her desk and brought out her gun, quickly taking out the magazine and placing it in her pocket. The rest of the team stared at her in shock. She smiled at them.

"What she does not know will not hurt her."

**Review!**


	20. Catching The Thief, And 'I Quit'

Ziva roughly opened the door to the interrogation room and slammed it behind her, making Carey jump visibly. She stared up at the seemingly angry agent, scared of what she might do to her.

"Where is he?" Ziva asked, in a dangerously low voice.

"Who?" Carey asked timidly.

"You know who I'm talking about."

Carey smiled evilly. "You can't make me tell."

Ziva got out her gun and held the barrel to Carey's head. "Yes I can. And if you do not, I will shoot you."

Carey stared at her in shock. "You wouldn't." She saw Ziva's finger tighten on the trigger.

"I would," she whispered. "Tell me where you are meeting him, and you will not get hurt."

* * *

Ziva walked into the bullpen with a smug look on her face. Tony noticed this and sensed that something was wrong.

"What've you done?" he asked worriedly. Ziva just smiled at him.

"I know where _he_ will be," she stated simply.

Tony smiled. "Great! Let's go!" As he got up and headed for the elevator, Ziva grabbed his arm.

"There is a catch," she said slowly, as if she was apprehensive of how he would react to her words.

The whole team automatically leaned in to hear what she was going to say.

"What's the catch?" Tony asked nervously. Ziva took a deep breath before speaking.

"Carey is coming with us."

"What?" Tony stared at her in shock.

"You heard me, Tony."

The whole bullpen was silent.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Ziva?" Gibbs asked.

"No. It's not a good idea. She's gone mad," Tony attempted to answer for her.

"If I have gone mad, it is from living with you for a year," Ziva pointed out. "Besides, she is the only one who knows where to meet Hamlet, and if she is not there he will suspect something. We have to take her."

"She's got a good point," Daisy pointed out. Tony huffed in annoyance.

"Daisy and Jude, go and get the suspect," Gibbs ordered. "McGee," he tossed the keys at his agent, "gas the car. I'm getting coffee. Fornell, you coming?"

"Sure, Gibbs." Fornell followed him into the elevator and watched the doors close as Daisy and Jude left to collect Carey from the interrogation room. McGee left the bullpen to gas the car. Just as Tony was about to leave, Ziva grabbed his arm and pulled herself closer to him. She looked into his eyes.

"Tony, what is wrong?" she asked. Tony looked away from her.

"I don't trust her."

"Who, Carey?"

"No, the boogie monster. Who d'ya think, Zi?"

Ziva was a little shocked by his outburst, but drew him into a hug anyway, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"You think I am afraid of my judgment?" she asked.

"No, I'm afraid you're gonna get yourself killed," Tony answered. Ziva looked up at him and caressed his cheek.

"Tony, there is no need to be afraid. Carey would not dare to step out of line with a woman like me. If she does, I will kill her instantly. Besides," she moved her hand down to Tony's chest, "I know you will have my six."

Tony snorted. "Yeah, if your plan doesn't backfire. If it does, I won't be sharing the blame, because I think she'll kill me first."

Ziva punched his chest lightly. "Stop being so negative!"

"Yes, honey," Tony droned, before smiling and kissing Ziva on the lips. The kiss was about to get more passionate when they heard someone clear their throat. They turned around to see Kaden and Terry standing at the edge of the bullpen, sodas in their hands.

"Do you always make out in the office?" Kaden asked curiously, a smirk creeping up onto his face. Terry glared at him before grabbing his arm and leading him into the elevator.

"We're just gonna be with Abby," she called out behind them. There was a bit of silence before Tony turned back to Ziva.

"Ya know, I think Gibbs is getting kinda suspicious…"

"What makes you think that?" Ziva asked him. Just then, her cell rang. She pulled it out and read the caller ID. She showed it to Tony, and he laughed.

"Told you so," he teased. She scowled at him playfully before answering it.

"Agent David," she answered.

"_David, you and DiNozzo better get your asses down here now!_" she heard Gibbs yell over the line. She pulled it away from her ear for a bit before ending the call. She turned to Tony.

"We are dead meat."

* * *

Gibbs glared at Tony, who just happened to be sitting in the shotgun seat, as he pulled into the meeting place where Hamlet was meant to be. Ziva was sitting in the backseat, watching Carey closely.

"What the hell took you two so long?" Gibbs yelled at Tony. He winced.

"Come on, boss – can't a couple spend a little time alone with each other?" Tony whined.

"Not when we have a case, DiNozzo!" Gibbs climbed out of the car and slammed the door behind him and Tony did the same, only closing the door lightly behind him.

Ziva climbed out with Carey following her, and the two women followed the men towards the abandoned building where they would be meeting the international thief. As soon as they reached the outside of the building, Ziva turned to Carey and pulled out a gun, forcing the magazine into place. Carey stared at her in shock, and the two men turned when they heard the magazine click into place.

"Wh-what are you doing?" Carey stuttered. Ziva handed her the gun.

"You must be able to handle yourself, just in case this meeting backfires," she explained.

Carey nodded and took the gun. "Thanks."

Tony was glaring at the exchange now, Ziva could see him seething from the corner of her eye.

"I must warn you though," Ziva said, smirking, "if you step out of line even once, I will not hesitate to let him shoot you." She jerked her head towards where Tony was standing, and Carey turned to see the man glaring angrily at her. She cowered a little at his glare, before realizing that Gibbs was glaring at her just as ferociously.

"I promise, I won't step out of line," Carey said.

"You won't if you want to live," Tony murmured. Ziva shot him a glare before the rest of their group got there. Jude was dressed in some sort of gangster outfit, and Ziva nearly burst out laughing when she saw it.

"What are you meant to be?" she asked.

"A gangster," he answered simply. Ziva controlled her face, although she was unable to hold back a small smirk. Tony, however, was less controlled.

He laughed.

"You… you look ridiculous!" he laughed. Jude glared at him.

"Let's see if you'd look better in this outfit then," he growled. Tony just kept laughing at him.

"DiNutzo?"

Tony straightened up. "Yeah, Fornell?"

"Put a sock in it."

Tony scowled at him, and everyone burst out laughing. Even Gibbs smirked at his senior agent's immaturity.

"You know, _he_ has gotta be here by now," Carey spoke up.

Gibbs nodded. "She's right, ya know. David & Daisy, take the left side. McGee & Fornell, you take the right side. DiNozzo and I will take the back."

Everyone nodded and took their positions and Jude followed Carey into the building, trying to look as natural as possible. Carey closed the door behind them, and they waited for a little while before Jude noticed something moving in the shadows. Carey noticed as well and turned to face the man that was approaching them. He had deep blue eyes and blond hair so bleached that it was easy to think that he was going grey. His jaw shape was firm and rigid, and his figure looked like one that would suit a model. He smiled at Carey, an evil smile, as he neared her and held his arms out. Jude shrunk back into the shadows to avoid being seen.

"Carey," Hamlet greeted. Carey smiled at him and returned his hug.

"Hamlet," she returned.

"It has been such a long time," he started.

"Yes, too long."

"Have you got my money?" he asked suddenly.

"Please, Hamlet, can't we spend some time enjoying each other's company?" she begged, purposely avoiding answering that question.

"Oh, very well. How have you been?"

"I've been good. You?"

"I have been good as well. Now that we have spent some time enjoying each other's company, I must ask this question: Have you got my money?"

"Please, Hamlet, just a little longer?"

"No, I need the money now."

Carey sighed. This wasn't going well. "Accomplice!"

Jude stepped out of the shadows, his shoulders hunched over and his hat pulled low on his head. "Yeah?"

"Bring the laptop and wire the money to the accounts," Carey commanded.

Jude walked out of the building to get the laptop and left the door open so that Daisy and Ziva could sneak in. Carey turned Hamlet's attention away from the door just as the two ladies snuck in and hid behind some old crates. They watched the way they interacted.

"They look like quite a sweet couple, don't you think Ziva?" Daisy whispered.

"It is, what you call, a con… from his side," Ziva answered with another whisper.

"He's tricking her?"

"I believe so."

They watched as Carey wound her arms around Hamlet's waist. Hamlet did the same to her, and froze when his hand hit something. He lifted her top a little to see a holster.

"What is this?" he asked. Carey blushed.

"A gun. I carry it around for protection," she answered.

"I have never seen you with a gun before…" He noticed some initials on the holster and read them. "FBI?"

Daisy cursed under her breath. "I gave her mine!"

"Gibbs, our cover has been blown!" Ziva whispered furiously into her mic.

"Should we come in, David?" he asked into the earpiece.

"No, I will call you when we need more back-up."

Not long after, Jude returned with the laptop, only to find Hamlet pointing a gun at him.

"Put the laptop down and put your hands in the air," Hamlet growled. Jude did as he said and slowly took a step towards him. Hamlet aimed the gun at Jude's head. "FBI, come out now or I will be forced to shoot."

There was no answer.

"FBI, I will be forced to shoot."

There was still no answer.

"Very well." Hamlet lowered the gun so that it was aimed at his shoulder. "I will make him suffer." His finger pulled on the trigger.

Jude cried out in pain as a bullet was fired into his shoulder.

"JUDE!" Daisy ran out to her husband's aid and immediately put pressure on his wound.

"Jude, what a nice name, 'Praise' in Hebrew," Hamlet commented. He turned to Carey. "Give me the money."

"No."

Ziva walked out from behind the crates, her gun pointing at Hamlet. "Do not make me shoot!"

Hamlet just laughed. "You could not possibly do that!"

* * *

Tony growled when he heard the message from Ziva. "I knew it! She blew our cover!"

"How do you know it was her, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked as they snuck around to the entrance where Ziva and Daisy went in.

"Because she's unreliable, boss. Just look at her!"

"That's no excuse, DiNozzo," Gibbs pointed out.

"I know boss, but I still don't trust her. She sent out a kid to kill a guy, for god's sake!" Tony was yelling by this point.

"DiNozzo, keep your voice down or shut up. You'll blow our cover."

"Sorry, boss." Tony kept quiet for a second. "I just can't believe–"

"Shut up, DiNozzo."

* * *

"Leave them alone, Hamlet," Carey warned. By then, Daisy was still putting pressure on Jude's shoulder wound but Ziva had surrendered after Hamlet had threatened to kill him.

"No, I won't, now give me the money!" he demanded.

"No! You can have me instead!"

"You? Why would I want you?"

"Because you love me."

"Love you?" Hamlet turned to face Carey. "Why would I love you?"

Realization dawned on her. "You don't love me?" The shock wore off as he turned to face the agents, ignoring her question.

"Now, where is the money?" he asked them, danger evident in his voice.

"We don't know," Jude answered quietly. Hamlet brought the gun up to aim at his head.

"Fine then, I will just have to make you suffer…"

* * *

"I still don't trust her, boss," Tony warned.

"Hey, DiNozzo, shut up!" Gibbs was thoroughly tired of Tony's complaining.

"But boss…"

Just as Gibbs was about to headslap him and glare at the senior field agent, there was a bang in the warehouse. The bang of a gun. Tony and Gibbs froze for a moment, registering what had just happened in their minds, before running and barging into the warehouse. They were shocked to see Ziva with her gun in her hand, staring at something on the ground, whist Daisy was putting pressure on what looked like a gun wound in Jude's shoulder. What shocked them the most was Carey standing with her gun drawn right behind what seemed like a dead body. Tony ran to check his pulse.

"He's dead, boss."

Gibbs glared at Carey. "You killed an innocent man?"

"No," she retorted, "I killed Hamlet Hackett. Thought I'd save you the trouble."

Gibbs smirked as McGee and Fornell came running in. McGee froze when he saw the dead body.

"He's dead?"

* * *

Jude sat up in the hospital bed. "I still don't see why I'm still here," he commented. "I'm absolutely fine."

"The doctors said they want you to stay overnight, Jude," Daisy explained. "Just overnight."

"I don't want to stay overnight."

"Well you will be staying overnight."

"But I don't want to."

"But you will."

"But–"

"You are staying overnight, Jude, whether you like it or not!"

Jude pouted from his position on the bed. "You're boring."

"You married me; you have to put up with it." Daisy kissed him on the cheek. "Don't worry, if you follow the doctor's orders like a good boy, you'll be out of here in no time."

Jude snorted. "Like that'll happen."

Just as Daisy was about to retort, there was a knock on the door before it opened to reveal Team Gibbs along with Fornell, Kaden and Terry. Jude smiled at them all.

"Hey, guys," he greeted.

"Hey," they all replied. Terry sat on the edge of his bed, fiddling with the edge of a new t-shirt that Abby had forced her to get. Kaden leaned against the bed post at the far end, playing a video game on a Nintendo 3DS. The rest of the team placed themselves around the room randomly, some sitting in chairs, others leaning against walls.

"So, when are you getting out?" Tony asked from his position against the far wall.

"Hopefully tomorrow, if the doctors clear me," Jude answered, avoiding Daisy's clear look of irritation aimed at Tony for asking the question. Jude turned to Fornell. "I'm on desk duty when I get back, aren't I?"

"No duh," Daisy murmured.

"Fornell." Jude sat up properly on the bed. "I quit."

Fornell stared at him in disbelief. "You what?"

"I quit. I wanna become a Phys. Ed. Teacher," Jude explained as if it was the simplest thing in the world. The whole room was silent, apart from the continual beeping coming for the Nintendo 3DS in Kaden's hands. Tony was the first one to speak.

"So you're finally following your dream, eh?"

Both Jude and Daisy glared at him. Tony was taken aback by the hostility.

"What? Was it something I said?"

* * *

Tony smiled as he finally dropped onto his bed that night, fully clothed. His exhaustion had finally caught up with him. "Maybe it's 'cause I'm old…" he suggested to himself out loud.

"I think it is."

Tony sharply looked up to see Ziva standing at the door, her bathrobe covering her pajamas – which were her usual tank top and shorts – and a smirk on her face. Tony sat up.

"I'm not old!" he exclaimed.

"But you just admitted it, no?" she retorted smugly. Tony sighed and lay back on the bed.

"Yeah, but you didn't have to comment!"

Ziva chuckled, taking off her bathrobe and hanging it behind the door before joining Tony on the bed. She snuggled closer to him.

"You have to change before bed, Tony," she pointed out.

"Too tired," he answered simply. Ziva raised an eyebrow at him and sat up.

"You are not sharing a bed with me with those clothes on," she pointed out.

Tony's eyes widened in shock. "Not the couch, please not the couch."

Ziva smiled evilly. "Change first, then I will see what I can do…"

**Review! We really want to hear what you think!**


	21. Shopping, Weddings and Arguments

**MARCH**

Tony smiled as he watched TJ try to pull herself up using the edge of the playpen. Kate was busy on the other side of the playpen, more interested with playing peek-a-boo with Ziva than trying to walk. For some reason, he'd felt like bringing his camera down to video the girls, and now had his attention focused on the baby girl in front of him. She smiled at him and reached up for the camera.

"Nuh-uh-uh, Tali," he scolded lightly. "Non toccarlo. _**(Do not touch it.)**_"

TJ pouted a little before turning away from him and letting go of the edge. Tony gasped.

"Ziva, Ziva look!"

Ziva looked up to see what he was talking about and she gasped when she saw TJ trying to take her first steps, her tongue stuck out in concentration.

"Tony, are you videoing this?" Ziva whispered loudly. Tony nodded dumbly as he focused the camera on his daughter.

TJ was toddling slowly across the playpen, her arms outstretched in front of her and tongue stuck out, concentrating on the other edge of the pen. Ziva watched, amazed, as her green eyes were completely focused on her target. That was before she fell three quarters of the way there. TJ looked a little surprised when she fell back onto her bum, but as soon as she saw the rattle in front of her she completely forgot about trying to walk and played with that instead. Ziva laughed lightly as she turned to Tony.

"Did you see that?" she asked as Tony turned the camera to Kate.

"The fact that she was walking?" he asked.

"No, the concentration on her face," she explained. "It was… different."

"She probably got that from you then," Tony pointed out. "If she was so determined."

Ziva smiled. "I think that might be a good thing." Just then, the doorbell rang.

"Maria, can you–" Ziva called out, only to be interrupted by the girl she was calling to.

"NO! I'm doing my homework! Do it yourself!" Maria yelled back rudely.

"I bet you she's on her phone," Tony pointed out. Ziva just rolled her eyes and left the playroom to answer the door. As she headed through the living room, she stumbled on a pile of clothes. She looked down to see one of Maria's jumpers lying on the floor. She sighed when she realized that wasn't the only item of Maria's clothing lying on the floor.

"MARIA!"

"What?" Maria trudged down the stairs, phone in her hand and still in her pajamas. Ziva stared at her in shock.

"It is midday. Get some clothes on and tidy this up!" she ordered.

"I'll tidy this up, but I really can't be bothered to change. I'm at home all day," Maria pointed out. Ziva sighed and just headed for the door.

"I am warning you, Maria – we have guests!" Ziva called out as she opened the door. She didn't expect the five women standing at the door, nor was she surprised to see them. She sighed. "Why are you here?" she asked them.

"Wedding planning, obviously!" Abby squealed.

"What?" Ziva asked, confused.

"Well, you haven't planned your wedding yet, have you?" Rebecca asked. Ziva shook her head.

"Then we have come to plan!" Abby confirmed, and Katie gave Ziva a thumbs up. Ziva looked over to Andy and Mukta were standing. They held their hands up in surrender.

"It was their idea, we swear!" Mukta defended.

"And there was no way they would back down!" Andy added. Ziva sighed.

"Come in then."

* * *

"So, what are the theme colors, then?"

Ziva thought about it. "I do not know, Katie. What do you suggest?"

"Well, I think if it's a simple wedding you should go with a simple white and gold or white and black," Katie suggested.

"I think you should go with blue and white or green and white," Rebecca interrupted. Ziva nodded at that suggestion.

"Or you can just have white and turquoise," Andy sighed. Everyone stared at her.

"Andy, that is… an absolutely brilliant idea!" Abby squealed. "Mukta, write it down!"

Mukta sighed as she quickly scribbled down the idea into the Wedding Planner. "Ok, what now?"

"Well, have you bought the Wedding Dress yet, Ziva?" Rebecca asked.

"No, why?"

Andy and Mukta visibly cringed whilst Katie, Rebecca and Abby's faces lit up. Ziva suddenly realized why they were so happy.

"No! I am NOT going dress shopping!" she exclaimed.

"Oh, come on!" Abby urged. "It'll be fun!"

"NO!"

"We'll just have to do it by force, then," Katie sighed. She grabbed Ziva's arm. "Rebecca, grab the other one before she can do anything!"

Rebecca quickly grabbed her other arm before she could begin struggling, and the pair dragged Ziva out of the front door towards Andy's car.

"Guys! Help!" Ziva called out behind her.

Andy smiled. "Sorry, can't!"

* * *

Ziva sighed as she came out of the dressing room, trying on the third dress that morning. "How about this one?"

Abby thought about it. "It looks… alright."

"I think it looks uncomfortable," Mukta voiced.

"Give us a little twirl, hon," Rebecca ordered. Ziva looked at her confused.

"A 'twirl'? What is a 'twirl'?" she asked.

"Just turn around," Andy sighed. Ziva did as she said before looking at the other women expectantly. The five women glanced at each other before looking back at Ziva.

"No."

"But this is the third dress I've tried on!" Ziva pointed out.

"Do you feel comfortable in it?" Katie asked. Ziva shook her head.

"Then it's a definite no."

Ziva sighed and turned to go back into the changing rooms.

It continued like that for the next five dresses, before Ziva came out in an undoubtedly horrible ninth dress. Katie and Mukta gagged at the sight of it, and Rebecca looked so shocked Abby thought she would faint. Abby just shook her head.

"Definitely no."

"Then what should I wear?" Ziva demanded. Andy stood up.

"Here, let me help. That way we can all get out and get back to our everyday lives sooner." She dragged Ziva back into the changing rooms and helped her to find a dress. Rebecca recovered from her shock.

"That dress was utterly repulsive," she commented.

"I don't think Tony would even _think_ about marrying her when she's wearing that," Katie added.

"You never know – men will be… men," Mukta sighed.

"Funny, that's what Andy's sister-in-law said just a few weeks ago," Abby said, surprised.

"Sister-in-law?" Rebecca said, confused. "She has a sister-in-law?"

"Yeah, Jude's wife," Abby explained. She saw the confused looks on their faces. "Wait, Andy didn't tell you that Jude got married?" The women all shook their heads.

"Hmm, they must've eloped."

Andy and Ziva finally appeared from the changing rooms at this time, and Andy was smiling when she joined her friends again in front of the small catwalk. Ziva walked out in a simple white wedding dress.

The dress flowed right to the ground, and hugged her curves until it got to her knees. The neckline wasn't too low cut, but in the middle it created a v-shape, cutting downwards. The straps looked simple enough at the front, but they tied into a knot at the lower back and flowed with the dress.

The girls gasped when they saw it.

"That dress looks perfect on you, Ziva!" Abby whispered in awe.

"Andy, yours taste in dresses is awesome!" Rebecca told her.

"Thanks. I'll teach you someday. Now, Ziva, hurry up and go change – we all actually want to live to see your wedding."

* * *

The six women all sat at a table outside a small café, all drinking either sodas, lemonade, or, in Abby's case, Caf-Pow!. It was then that Abby decided to bring up her question.

"Hey, Andy?"

"Hmm?" Andy looked up from where she was absent-mindedly drawing circles on the table with her fingers.

"Did Jude and Daisy elope?"

Andy looked a little shocked. "No. Why?"

"It's just that they didn't know they were married." Abby signaled to the three women she was talking about. Andy stared in confusion at Katie.

"I thought Becky told you?" she asked.

"Apparently not," Katie pointed out.

"Or you just forgot to tell us," Rebecca added, earning a small slap on the arm.

"But you were at my wedding, and you saw them together," Andy pointed out. The three women thought about this.

"Oh yeah," Mukta finally said. "Our bad."

"So, do we need to organize anything else for Ziva's wedding today?" Rebecca asked, obviously eager.

"Tony said that he was getting the church and the reception place, so we do not need to organize anything else," Ziva concluded. "We should just go home."

"Or go clothes shopping!" Abby suggested.

"NO!" Andy, Mukta and Ziva yelled at the same time.

"I can tolerate Wedding Dress shopping, but I will definitely not tolerate clothes shopping!" Ziva told them.

"My wardrobe is full to the brim – David banned me from clothes shopping," Andy pointed out.

"And I get my clothes elsewhere," Mukta said. Abby looked over to Katie and Rebecca.

"Maybe we should spend the rest of the day at Ziva's place?" Rebecca suggested.

"Fine," Abby gave in.

* * *

Ziva opened the door, and all six women expected to hear either a baby crying, or Maria on the phone to one of her friends. What they didn't expect to hear was a full-blown argument, being watched by the frat brothers, McGee and Jude, between Maria and Tony in the living room.

"I didn't touch your damn make-up set, Maria!" Tony yelled.

"Yes, you did! I know you did! Who else would be stupid enough to go into my room without permission?" Maria countered.

"Did you just call me stupid?"

"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't."

"You just called me stupid!"

"No shit, Sherlock!"

"You talk too much shit!"

"Oh, shut up!"

The women entered the living room, watching Maria and Tony's useless banter over something that probably didn't matter.

"Why do you need make-up, anyway?"

"Because I do! Why do you even care?"

"Why can't I care?"

"Because you have the sensitivity of a prick!"

"She's right, you know," Matt pointed out.

"Shut up!" Tony yelled at him.

"It's not nice to yell at people, you dickhead!" Maria defended Matt.

"Shut up, you chimp-faced bitch!"

"Well that wasn't very nice," Rebecca scolded. Her scolding went on unnoticed.

"Yeah, well you have a disproportionate head, and you don't see us complaining!" Maria countered.

"That one was more of a compliment," Arif said, smirking. That comment earned a few stifled laughs and a lot of smirks. Mukta just rolled her eyes at her husband's immaturity.

"Why you little–" Tony started.

"OI!" Andy yelled. Everyone turned to look at her. "SHUT UP, YOU TWO!"

Tony and Maria stared at her in shock.

"Now, where are the twins?" Ziva asked. Tony and Maria both pointed upwards.

"They're sleeping," Maria explained. Ziva nodded. There was an awkward silence before Ziva spoke up again.

"Well, since we are all here, you might as well stay over–"

"And you'll cook?" Arif asked eagerly. Mukta shot her husband a glare.

"And we will order take-out," Ziva corrected. The men groaned.

"It might be pizza," Katie suggested helpfully. The men's faces brightened considerably. The women all rolled their eyes at them.

"Men," Maria stated.

* * *

Ziva cautiously opened the door to Maria's room, not bothering to knock on the girl's door. Maria sighed when she saw Ziva enter the room.

"Bene, non infastidisce per bussare, Zi, _**(Fine, don't bother knocking, Zi)**_," she grumbled.

"What was that?" Ziva asked.

"Nothing."

Ziva sighed as she joined Maria on her bed, where she was seemingly chatting with someone on her Blackberry whilst listening to music on her I-Pod Touch. She carefully took one earphone out of Maria's ear so that she could hear her talking.

"What is wrong, Maria?" Ziva asked.

"Niente _**(Nothing)**_," Maria replied simply, continuing to chat on her Blackberry. Ziva sighed and snatched the Blackberry off her before turning off the music on her I-Pod Touch and disconnecting the earphones. Maria glared at her.

"Hey!"

"I was talking to you, and I expect you to listen." Ziva sighed as she put the items on the dresser. "What has happened to you, Maria? You used to be kind and caring even though you were a little cheeky."

"J'ai grandi _**(I grew up)**_," Maria answered rudely. Ziva glared at her.

"You are too young to grow up – growing up early is not good."

"How do you know?" Maria spat. "You know nothing about anything I'm going through!"

"And you know nothing about what I went through!" Ziva was furious now. "You didn't have to be trained at the age of eleven, taught how to handle guns and fight! You didn't get beaten or punished for doing a little wrong! You were never neglected so much by father that you had to work to earn his attention! You didn't lose your only sister to a bomb, or your only brother to a gun." Ziva's voice faltered. Maria saw the hurt in her eyes.

"I'm… so sorry, Zi," she whispered.

"It is ok, I was just trying to prove to you that growing up hurts, so you should try to slow down a bit." Ziva took a deep breath as she got up.

"Hey, Ziva?"

Ziva turned to see her younger sister sitting up on her bed. "Yes?"

"Thanks." Maria gave her a weak smile. Ziva smiled back.

"It is alright," Ziva smiled back.

"So… how was the dress shopping?"

Ziva raised an eyebrow at her. "Do not even get me started on that."

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	22. Arguments, Churches and More Planning

**Hey readers! Sorry for the long wait. Things have been a bit hectic... I'm not going to go into details.  
So, here's the next chapter! Enjoy!**

* * *

"Abby, no more hall searching!"

"Yeah, I thought we already agreed that we were gonna go round Ziva's, have a couple of beers then kick them out so that they can go on their honeymoon!"

"Actually, we agreed that you'd have a couple of beers, Katie."

"Whatever! Didn't we agree that?"

"No, because Rebecca said that she wouldn't mind having a beer and Andy said she liked cider. Also, we said that we'd have wine and champagne there with fizzy grape juice."

"Fizzy grape juice is nice!"

"Andy, shut up!"

"Why should I?"

"Ok, now we're going off subject."

"Gee, ya think?"

"Oh, ha, ha, very funny Abby."

"Would you all just be quiet?" Ziva yelled over the arguing voices.

The five other women were silent.

"Abby, we will not be doing any more hall searching because, as we have already said, we will be having the reception at my house."

Abby sulked. "But Ziva–"

"My wedding, my decision. Besides, we will not be having many guests."

Abby sighed in defeat. "Fine."

Ziva nodded. "Good. Now, are there any questions about this?"

"I have one – why are you having a discussion in the bathroom?" Maria asked as she leant on the bathroom door.

"It was Abby's idea, now are we done here?"

After the chorus of yeses, the women left the bathroom.

* * *

Tony looked up at the church that was standing in front of him. It was a large church, more like a chapel, with large windows all over the building. Tony turned back to face David.

"You sure this is the place?" he asked. David nodded.

"Of course – I go to church here, Tony. This is definitely it," David reassured him. Tony sighed as David led them into the hall where three people were standing – two black men and a black woman – at the far end. David led me up to them.

"Hey, Pastor!" he called out. One of the men turned to face him. He wasn't very tall, about 5 feet ten inches, and wore glasses. He was smiling when he saw David.

"Hello, David," he greeted. The woman and the other man smiled at him as well.

"David," the woman smiled at him. She was about an inch taller than the Pastor, but she seemed taller because of how slim she was. She wore glasses, like the Pastor, but they seemed more of a modern plastic design rather than the metal ones he was wearing.

"First Lady," he replied. He turned to the other man. "Mr Mante." Mr Mante's face looked kind of familiar to Tony, like he'd seen it somewhere before. He was an average heighted man – about 6 feet tall – with quite large biceps.

"I hope you're treating my daughter right, David," Mr Mante warned. That's when Tony realized that Mr Mante was Andy's dad. David nodded.

"Of course I am, sir."

Tony cleared his throat to get David's attention, and David suddenly remembered why he was there.

"Oh, um, Pastor? This is my mate Tony DiNozzo." – he gestured over to me – "He's getting married in a few months and we were wondering if you could marry the couple here, at church?"

The Pastor smiled and nodded. "I wouldn't mind."

David smiled. "Thank you, Pastor." He turned and headed straight out of the church, with Tony hot on his heels.

"So, what do we do now?" Tony asked.

"Have you got your suit for the wedding?" David asked him as he got into the driver's seat of his car.

"Not yet," Tony admitted as he got into the 'shotgun' seat. David grinned at him. Tony immediately realized what he was thinking.

"No."

* * *

Tony and Ziva sighed as they lay beside each other, thinking over the events of that day. Tony smiled as he remembered something from earlier on.

"I heard you had a meeting in the bathroom today," he smirked. Ziva glared at him.

"You guys hogged the kitchen and there was nowhere else to go without us risking being heard," she defended.

"Sure," Tony said, unconvinced by the statement.

"I heard you found a church," Ziva said, quickly changing the subject. Tony nodded as he yawned.

"Yeah, and I met Andy's dad too," he added. Ziva raised her eyebrows at him.

"Really? What does he look like?"

"A shocking resemblance to Jude. I'm guessing Andy looks more like her mom."

Ziva nodded and laid her head on his chest snuggling closer to him. Tony wrapped his arms around her shoulders and kissed her forehead.

"You do know we have a lot of planning to do, right?" Ziva pointed out.

"Like what? We've basically got our wedding all planned out already," Tony yawned.

"But we have not planned the twins' first birthday party yet."

Tony's eyes widened in shock. "I'd completely forgotten about that. What, it's nearly a year already?"

"Yes, and we are getting even closer to that dreaded potty-training stage."

Tony laughed. "Yeah, dreaded."

"Well, if you do not think it will be that bad, why don't you potty train them."

Tony froze. "I didn't say…"

Ziva sat up and looked straight into his eyes. "You said it all in your laugh, Tony. It was a dead give-away."

"You said it right!"

* * *

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	23. Birthday Parties and Cake Fights

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**12****TH**** MAY**

Ziva smiled down at the little girls sleeping in their cots. It was already a year since the girls had been born, and now they were inviting the team and Tony's frat family over along with their neighbours for a little party. Ziva leaned over to stroke Kate's cheek gently.

"Wondering where the year's gone, Ziva?"

Ziva turned to see Tony standing at the door in a wife-beater and a pair of pajama bottoms. Ziva nodded.

"Yes. I mean, it has all gone so fast!" Ziva exclaimed in a whisper, waving her arms about to emphasize her point. Tony chuckled softly.

"It has," Tony agreed. Suddenly there was a small cry from TJ's cot, and Tony went to pick up the now awake little girl.

"Dada," TJ murmured sleepily as she clung to her father.

"Si? _**(Yes?)**_" Tony asked.

"Hung'y," she murmured as she buried her face into Tony's neck.

"Ok, che cosa vuoi? _**(Ok, what do you want?)**_" Tony asked, already knowing the answer to that question.

"Pear!" TJ giggled as she sat up straight in Tony's arms and started clapping. Tony chuckled as he walked downstairs to the kitchen. Ziva turned to Kate's cot as she woke up.

"Mama?" Kate asked as she rubbed her eyes sleepily.

"Oui? _**(Yes?)**_" Ziva stroked Kate's cheek.

"'Nana p'ease," Kate asked as she stood up in her cot using the edge to help her. Ziva smiled at her.

"D'accord, _**(Okay)**_" Ziva sighed as she picked up the little girl and carried her downstairs to the kitchen. 'This little girl is so stubborn,' she sighed. 'Still, she inherited it from me.'

Ziva lounged on the couch as she watched TJ and Kate playing around in the living room with their toys, toddling about and giggling. She was just waiting for the guests to arrive before the party actually started. The kitchen was all set up – food and drinks all prepared with one huge birthday cake for the girls to share.

At that moment, TJ was playing with the usual stack of newspapers in the corner of the room whilst Kate was playing with one of the baby toys she had gotten for Christmas. Just as TJ was about to rip her third piece of newspaper to shreds, the doorbell rang. Ziva sat up from her position on the couch.

"I'll get it!" Maria cried as she raced down the stairs to answer the door. She opened the door to find all of the guests standing there, green and blue party hats and all. Maria burst out laughing.

"You all look utterly ridiculous!" she said in between laughs.

"We came for the party, not for your opinion," Matt pointed out, arms folded over his chest. Tony joined Maria at the front door.

"Hey, what's–" He paused when he saw his friends and teammates standing outside the door before bursting into laughter at the sight of their party hats. The seven of the nine men standing at the door glared at him, one of them was, unsurprisingly, Gibbs. Tony's laugh reduced at bit when he saw Gibbs' glare.

"It was Abby's idea," McGee told him, but that sent Tony straight back into his laughing fit.

"Don't go laughing, Tony – I've got a hat for you, too!" Abby exclaimed. Tony froze.

"Yeah, that shut you up," Maria murmured as she let everyone in.

"Kate, Tali! Vieni qui! _**(Come here!)**_" Tony called out. Kate quickly climbed off her Grandpa Gibbs' lap, ruffling her green dress in the process, and ran into her father's arms as he was standing by the kitchen door. TJ looked up from her spot next to the TV before going back to poking Jude's nose and giggling.

"Tali!" Tony called again. TJ quickly stood up and ran to her daddy, sensing the warning in his tone. Everyone laughed at the small girl in the blue dress as she ran straight to her father and leapt into his arms.

That's when Ziva brought in the cake.

It was a large rectangular cake, with blue frosting on one half and green frosting on the other. The words '**Happy Birthday Caitlin Abigail & Tali Jennifer**' were written in huge white letters, and the girls' initials had also been put on the cake. The twins clapped gleefully when they saw the large cake with two candles on it being brought into the living room.

"Cake!" TJ squealed.

All the adults in the room laughed as Ziva set the cake down on the coffee table and Tony let the twins run towards it. Ziva held them back before they could knock it over and set them in front of their own candles – one was blue, for TJ, and the other was green, for Kate. Kate smiled and looked around at the cameras that had suddenly appeared to take pictures for them blowing out their first birthday candles. TJ, however, was focused on the lit candle in front of her, mesmerized by the flickering flame in front of her. She reached out to touch it, but Ziva saw her before she could touch it and quickly pulled her hand back.

"Everybody sing!" Tony yelled, causing his girls to jump a bit.

"_Happy birthday to you,  
Happy birthday to you,  
Happy birthday Kate and TJ,  
Happy birthday to you!_"

As the adults in the room were singing, TJ took this as her chance to go for the candle again. It was Tony who spotted her this time and pulled her hand back, only to have it pulled out of his grip so that she could touch the candle. He grabbed her hand one last time and held it firmly so that she couldn't pull it out of his grip. Her eyes widened and she started whining when she turned to Tony.

"Blow out the candles!" Abby called out when they finished the song. Tony leaned down between the girls and let go of TJ's hand.

"Blow the candles!" he told his girls. Both girls leaned forward and blew out the candles, each blowing out their own. The whole room erupted into cheers. As soon as the candles were blow out, TJ dipped her finger into the frosting and licked it.

"Cake," she mumbled as she ate her cake. Everyone laughed.

Then Ziva walked forward, bringing a knife with her to cut the cake and a plate. Tony quickly pulled the twins aside so that Ziva could cut the cake. As soon as she cut a slice, she placed it on the table in front of them. Both girls reached for the cake, and they froze when they realized they both wanted it. Then the fighting began.

Both girls started tugging on the plastic plate with the cake on it.

"Mine!" Kate screamed.

"No, mine!" TJ yelled as she pulled the plate towards her.

"Tali, give Kate the cake and daddy'll cut you a new slice," Tony offered.

"No! Dis wun mine, dada!" TJ objected.

"TJ, mine!" Kate yelled.

"No, mine!"

"Kate, how about this cake?" Ziva offered, holding out another slice.

"No! Dis wun!" Kate objected. Everyone in the room smirked at Tony and Ziva's failed attempts at getting the twins to stop fighting, whilst only just being able to contain their laughter at the girls' little fight.

"Dis wun mine!" TJ yelled.

"No, mine!" Kate retorted.

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

TJ pouted. "Fine!" She let go of the plate, leaving the cake to splatter all over Kate's face and her dress. Both parents stared at the girl in shock, Tony thinking how brave his daughter was and Ziva wondering how she was going to get the icing off the dress. Kate's eyes filled with tears before she started bawling.

"הו בוי! _**(Oh boy!)**_" Ziva murmured before picking Kate up and rushing her upstairs before she could make any more noise. Tony grabbed TJ and dragged her into the playroom before he started speaking.

"Ciò era una cosa molto cattiva che si ha fatto. Lei ha saputo ciò? _**(That was a very bad thing you did. Did you know that?)**_" Tony stared into the eyes of his one year old daughter. TJ's bottom lip wavered and her eyes went wide as a tear trickled down her cheek.

"No, no! Non piangere! _**(No, no! Don't cry!)**_" Tony tried to reassure her. TJ just started crying. Tony sighed.

"Vieni qui, _**(Come here)**_" he sighed as he held his arms out. TJ ran into her fathers arms and cried into his t-shirt. Tony stroked her hair soothingly, calming her down a bit before he started talking. He held the girl at arm's length.

"TJ, it's not nice to put cake on other people," Tony pointed out. "So no more of that, ok?" TJ nodded.

"Good," Tony smiled, although in his mind he was constantly repeating, '_I don't believe her_'.

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	24. The Real Wedding

**Here's the next chapter.  
Enjoy!**

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**17****TH**** JULY**

Ziva sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror for the fifth time in the last ten minutes. She didn't usually look in the mirror so much. Why was she doing it now? She sighed as she checked again to make sure her make-up was perfect.

"I'm sure your make-up's fine, Ziva."

Ziva turned to Maria, who was sitting on a stool behind her. "How do you know?"

"Because either way, Tony's gonna marry you today," Maria pointed out. "He'd be a fool not to marry you; after all you've been through. After all I've put you both through…" Maria smirked. Ziva smiled at her little sister.

"Thank you, Maria."

"No problem."

The door to the room opened a little, and Gibbs peeked in, a rare grin on his face.

"You ready?"

Ziva could tell that he was excited about walking her down the aisle. Not having the opportunity to do it for Kelly… this was like heaven for him.

Ziva stood up. "Yes, I am." Gibbs nodded before leaving the room.

"I've never seen him so happy before!" Maria whispered. Ziva just laughed.

"Come on, go and get the twins," she said as she headed over to the windowsill. Maria nodded and was about to head out when she saw Ziva picking up a crown and putting it on her head.

"A crown?"

Ziva looked over to Maria. "Abby told me to wear it."

Maria nodded. "I think it looks quite nice on you. Keep it for the big one," she called out as she left the room to get the twins.

Ziva looked one last time in the mirror, adjusting her crown a little. "I will get Abby for this," she sighed. She turned for the door. "Well, this is it." She picked up her bouquet and opened the door to see Gibbs waiting by it and Maria holding the twins' hands. Both of the little girls were dressed in white flower girls' dresses with Kate wearing a green hair band and TJ wearing a blue one. Ziva took a deep breath before linking her arm with Gibbs' waiting one.

"Are you ready?" Gibbs asked again. Ziva just nodded and took another deep breath. Gibbs nodded at Maria and she opened the church doors, revealing a long white rug running down the middle of the seats and the Pastor at the end. Tony was standing in his suit, fidgeting with his tie, when he noticed the doors open. He quickly fixed up his tie and waited for the bridal party to start walking down.

Maria headed slowly down the aisle, pulling the twin girls along gently so that they could keep up with her. Tony smiled when he saw TJ's wandering eyes, full of curiosity, staring at the ceiling. Kate was staring at her feet, making sure she didn't trip over them. Tony always wondered how she could have so much logic for a child her age.

Finally, Gibbs walked in, his arm linked with Ziva's. Tony just gaped at the woman, wondering how she could make a dress so simple look so elegant. Ziva smiled at the expression on Tony's face, whilst Gibbs just rolled his eyes at him.

"Shut your trap, DiNozzo – you'll catch flies!" he called out. Everyone started laughing as Tony blushed. The duo finally reached the altar where Tony stood, and Gibbs waited next to Ziva.

"Who gives this woman to this man in marriage?" the Pastor asked.

"I do," Gibbs replied. He took Ziva's hand and placed it in Tony's.

"You screw this up, DiNozzo, and you're dead," Gibbs whispered before kissing Ziva on the cheek.

"Go it, boss," Tony replied as he took Ziva's arm in his. Ziva quickly tossed her bouquet to Abby before the soon-to-be-married couple faced the Pastor.

"Good throw," Tony whispered. Ziva smiled at him.

The Pastor cleared his throat. "Dear friends and family, we are gathered here today to witness and celebrate the union of Anthony DiNozzo and Ziva David in marriage. Through their time together, they have come to realize that their personal dreams, hopes, and goals are more attainable and more meaningful through the combined effort and mutual support provided in love, commitment, and family; and so they have decided to live together as husband and wife."

Tony turned his eyes to Ziva, looking at how her hair was now cascading down her back, straighter than usual. Her eyes looked happy as they watched the Pastor speak, as if she were excited about what was to come. His eyes slid down subtly to her dress, the way it hugged her curves… He quickly turned his eyes back to the Pastor to see if he had missed anything.

"…talk things over, to confide in each other, to laugh with each other, to enjoy life together, and to share moments of quiet and peace…"

Tony zoned out again, imagining the times he'd have with Ziva – the good times, the bad times… more kids…

Ziva elbowed him in the gut. Tony glared at her before he realized the Pastor was waiting for something.

"Erm, sorry… what was that again?" He could practically feel people rolling their eyes at him from their seats.

"Anthony DiNozzo, do you take Ziva David to be your lawfully wedded wife, promising to love and cherish, through joy and sorrow, sickness and health, and whatever challenges you may face, for as long as you both shall live?"

Tony nodded. "I do."

"And do you, Ziva David, take Anthony DiNozzo to be your lawfully wedded husband, promising to love and cherish, through joy and sorrow, sickness and health, and whatever challenges you may face, for as long as you both shall live?"

Ziva smiled and nodded. "I do."

"Is there anything else the couple would like to say?" The Pastor looked expectantly at the pair. Tony nodded and turned to Ziva.

"Ziva, from the first day I met you, I knew you were special. You were different, and I liked different. You were outgoing, brave, strong, unwilling to back down because someone discriminated you, or called you weak because of something you did. Every single day I woke up, hoping to see you in the office just to make you laugh or smile, and I'd always hoped you were the one. Even through the tough times we went through together – the love, the hate, the anger and the comfort – I always felt special when I was with you. The past year and ten months were the toughest, but I knew, without a doubt, that being by your side would help us to get through everything. And I'm glad that I'll be there, waking up next to you, every day for the rest of our lives."

Tears sprang to Ziva's eyes as she heard what Tony said, as loving and caring as it was. She cleared her throat and started her own.

"Tony, I want to thank you for all that you've done for me. From the first day I arrived in America, I thought that I would never find someone special, never learn how to love, but here I am, at my own wedding. You taught me how love is not all about how you treat the person, but how you feel about them and how you see them. I knew that even McGee could see the love between us, and I want to thank you by spending the rest of my life with you, cherishing our love to the rest of our lives."

Everyone smiled – in the frat brothers' case, cheered – at the statements that both Ziva and Tony made.

"The rings, please?"

Tony and Ziva turned to where McGee and Abby were sitting. "The rings?" they hissed. Abby pointed to the twins, who were walking forward carefully, each with a box in their hands. TJ handed hers to Tony, whilst Kate handed hers to Ziva. The couple smiled at their young girls before turning back to each other.

Tony opened his ring box first, to reveal a simple gold wedding ring. He passed the empty box back to TJ before taking Ziva's hand.

"Tony, repeat after me," the Pastor started. "I, Anthony DiNozzo…"

"I, Anthony DiNozzo…" Tony copied.

"Give you, Ziva David…"

"Give you, Ziva David…"

"…this ring as a symbol of my love and faithfulness…"

"…this ring as a symbol of my love and faithfulness…"

"As I place it on your finger, I commit my heart and soul to you…"

"…As I place it on your finger, I commit my heart and soul to you…"

"…and I ask you to wear this ring as a reminder of the vows we have spoken today, our wedding day."

"…and I ask you to wear this ring as a reminder of the vows we have spoken today, our wedding day."

Tony carefully slipped the ring onto Ziva's third finger, and smiled at her. "Your turn."

Ziva laughed before taking out the ring for Tony and handing the box back to Kate. The twin girls ran back to Maria before Ziva's exchange began. Ziva took Tony's hand in hers.

"Ziva, repeat after me," the Pastor started. "I, Ziva David…"

"I, Ziva David…" Ziva copied.

"Give you, Anthony DiNozzo…"

"Give you, Anthony DiNozzo…"

"…this ring as a symbol of my love and faithfulness…"

"…this ring as a symbol of my love and faithfulness…"

"As I place it on your finger, I commit my heart and soul to you…"

"…As I place it on your finger, I commit my heart and soul to you…"

"…and I ask you to wear this ring as a reminder of the vows we have spoken today, our wedding day."

"…and I ask you to wear this ring as a reminder of the vows we have spoken today, our wedding day."

The Pastor smiled. "By the power vested in me by Washington, District of Columbia, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Tony?"

Tony smiled. "Yeah?"

"You may now kiss the bride."

Tony smiled as he pulled Ziva into a passionate kiss, ignoring the cheers from behind him. Ziva smiled as they pulled apart.

"Friends and family, I present to you, for the first time, Mr and Mrs Anthony and Ziva DiNozzo!"

There were loud cheers from the small audience as Tony wrapped his arm around Ziva's waist and proceeded to take her to the back room to sign the wedding papers.

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	25. The Reception

**And here's the final chapter of SSAOST2! I hope you enjoyed the story!**

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Ziva and Tony arrived at their front door after about half an hour of signing papers. Tony got out of the car quickly before opening Ziva's door for her and helping her out.

"Thank you," she said before linking her arm in his. He smiled at her.

"You are very welcome, my beautiful _wife_."

"I still must get used to that – Mrs Ziva DiNozzo."

"Don't worry – you will." Tony led Ziva up the stairs to the front door, only to find it unlocked. He pushed the door open slowly, and the sound of music hit their ears. As the newly wedded couple walked into their home, they noticed the simple white decorations covering the walls, and the huge '**CONGRATULATIONS**' banner hanging across the staircase. Tony smiled and hugged Ziva close to him as they entered the living room.

Across the sofa sat Matt, Jude and David, watching a football game on the TV. Arif, McGee and Mark were standing by the kitchen door, involved in a deep conversation. The girls, as well as Ducky and Jimmy, were all standing in the kitchen, getting the food ready whilst Gibbs helped Maria change the twins.

Everyone looked up as Tony and Ziva entered the room.

"Hey! It's the happy couple!" Abby called out from the kitchen. Everyone burst into laughter.

"Let the wedding reception begin!" Tony called out as he turned on the stereo. Everyone cheered as the music started playing.

In a few hours, the party had gotten into full swing, and everyone was having a great time. A few of the neighbors had popped round to see what was going on and had congratulated the newly-wedded couple, and most of the food had already disappeared. Director Vance and his family had managed to turn up, along with a few other agents, and Fornell had even turned up to say congratulations before leaving.

Tony and Ziva were sitting on the sofa, cuddling each other as they snacked on small plates of food, when Abby decided to get up and change the music.

"The bride and groom will now have their first dance as a couple," Abby announced, clearing people out of the way to provide a dance floor.

Tony slowly pulled Ziva onto the 'dance floor', and smiled when he heard the song that was playing.

"_Some day, when I'm awfully low,  
When the world is cold,  
I will feel a glow just thinking of you,  
Just the way you look tonight_," he sang as they swayed to the music. Ziva smiled at him and laid her head on his chest, listening to him sing as they swayed to the beat.

"_You're lovely, with your smile so warm  
And your cheeks so soft,  
There is nothing for me but to love you,  
And the way you look tonight._"

Ziva closed her eyes and blocked out the world around her, concentrating on her and Tony. Tony smiled and pulled her close, singing more of the music to her as they swayed.

"_With each word your tenderness grows,  
Tearing my fears apart...  
And that laugh that wrinkles your nose,  
It touches my foolish heart._"

By now everyone was watching them dance, smiling and commenting on how cute a couple they were – most of the commenting was done by Abby. But the couple didn't hear any of those comments, as all they could feel were themselves and their partner.

"_Lovely  
Never, ever change.  
Keep that breathless charm.  
Won't you please arrange it?  
'Cause I love you  
Just the way you look tonight._"

Ziva opened her eyes and smiled up at her husband, taking in his smiling features and smiling right back at him. She laughed lightly as he started twirling her during the instrumental, swaying her from side to side and spinning her around. Tony smiled at her widely, glad that she was having a fantastic time.

"_With each word your tenderness grows,  
Tearing my fear apart...  
And that laugh that wrinkles your nose,_" he poked her nose, earning a small frown from her,_  
_"_It touches my foolish heart._"

She smiled again.

"_Lovely  
Never, ever change.  
Keep that breathless charm.  
Won't you please arrange it?  
'Cause I love you  
Just the way you look tonight.  
Just the way you look tonight._"

"I love you, Tony," Ziva whispered as she pecked him on the lips.

"I love you too, Ziva," Tony replied, pecking her back. The couple stayed that way on the dance floor as the next song came on.

"Bon voyage!"

Tony and Ziva smiled and waved at everyone as they left for their honeymoon. Tony opened the door to the car for Ziva and closed it behind her before running round to the other side and getting in. He started up the car and put it into drive before smiling and turning to Ziva.

"You ready?" he asked.

"As I ever will be," Ziva smiled. Tony put the car into drive and drove off, using one hand to wave at the leftover guests standing on his driveway. The couple smiled as they drove away, heading for their honeymoon.

"Mrs Ziva DiNozzo," Ziva murmured. "It has quite a ring to it."

"So it does," Tony agreed.

"If only Maria and the twins were here. The honeymoon would be quite boring without them."

Tony frowned at Ziva. "The whole point of a honeymoon is to spend alone time with your new partner, Ziva," he pointed out. "Besides, they're all probably sleeping at home by now."

"I wouldn't bet on that."

Tony hit the brakes and both he and Ziva turned to see where the voice came from. They burst out laughing when they saw who it was in the seat behind them.

"I guess you got what you wanted, Zi – Maria, Kate and TJ all going on our honeymoon with us," Tony laughed. Ziva nodded.

"This will be very interesting," she added.

"And fun!" Maria added. Tony turned to face forwards in his seat again.

"To the future!" he yelled as he started driving off again. Everyone started laughing as they sped off towards their family honeymoon… in Hawaii.

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**The song was 'The Way You Look Tonight' by Frank Sinatra.**

**Hey readers!**

**I hope you enjoyed the story!**

**Just thought I'd tell you that the sequel to this story is called 'SSAOST3: Growing Family'. Hope you enjoy it!**

**Thanks for reading!**

**xxx**


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